


X-Patrol: Chapter 20 – Moonridge Lodge

by thebasement_archivist



Category: The X-Files
Genre: Crossover, Fiction, M/M, Mpreg, Relationship(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2004-08-29
Updated: 2004-08-29
Packaged: 2018-11-20 07:19:54
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 24,292
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11331096
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thebasement_archivist/pseuds/thebasement_archivist
Summary: Christmas blizzard brings a few surprises.





	X-Patrol: Chapter 20 – Moonridge Lodge

**Author's Note:**

> Note from alice ttlg, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [The Basement](http://fanlore.org/wiki/The_Basement), which moved to the AO3 to ensure the stories are always available and so that authors may have complete control of their own works. To preserve the archive, I began manually importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in June 2017. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on [The Basement's collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/thebasement/profile).

X-Patrol: Chapter 20 – Moonridge Lodge

### X-Patrol: Chapter 20 – Moonridge Lodge

#### by Jo B

  


Title: X-Patrol: Chapter 20 - Moonridge Lodge 

Author: Jo B 

Keywords: M/Sk, D/K, J/B, D/M, F/V/K Slash, AU, mpreg, X-Files/The Sentinel/Highlander/Due South crossover 

Rating: NC-17 

Story Summary: Colonization has begun. Four men set aside their differences and form an alliance to fight the aliens and stake out a new life together in their shattered world. 

Chapter Summary: A Christmas blizzard brings a few surprises. 

Disclaimer: The X-Files are the property Chris Carter, 1013 productions and Fox Broadcasting. The Sentinel belongs to Pet Fly Productions, UPN, and Paramount. Highlander is the property of Rysher/Panzer/Davis/Gaumont/Fireworks. Due South belongs to Alliance Communication. No money is being made from their use. 

Author's notes: Since I'm making the Due South addition a threesome in order to save confusion, I'm going to have Fraser start referring to Kowalski as Stan instead of Ray. 

Warning! This story contains romance between two men. Turn back now, if the subject matter offends you. 

Warning! Warning! This story contains male pregnancy! Eek run for your lives! 

Archive: Yes, just leave my name attached. 

Web site: http://slashingmulder.com/JoB/ 

Special thanks to my beta-readers Joey and Xscribe. 

* * *

Chapter 20  
X-Patrol 

Moonridge Lodge 

The Rat 

Friday, December 19, 2003 

With the toddlers bundled up in their snowsuits and sitting on a sled, the men pulled it behind them while trudging through the snow in search of their family's Christmas tree. 

To be truthful, Krycek had found the perfect tree last summer a half mile from their home, and that was where they were heading. When the kids got older they'd have a real Christmas tree hunt, but with them being so young the guys opted to get the tree, chop it down, and drag it home before the kids got too cold and impatient. 

Joey was wearing the multicolor snow hat that Krycek had knitted for his birthday. The little boy was finding it easier to talk when they were in small groups, but he was still too shy to talk during dinner or at large gatherings. Connor on the other hand liked being the center of attention and would ask question after question, while Gwen spoke only when she had something to say. 

Krycek smiled at his partner. John really didn't like winter but he'd do anything for their daughter like slogging through the snow for a damn tree. To Krycek's left, Walter had on his fur cap and looked exhilarated at being outside on this cold winter day while his gloved hand clutched Fox's who appeared equally as excited. Blair and Jim seemed to be having a good time as they walked hand in hand. 

"What about this one?" Krycek asked when they came to the tree he had pre-selected. 

"It perfect," Blair said. "What do you think kids?" 

The kids looked at it unsure what to think, so Walter squatted down next to the sled. "We're going to bring this tree home and decorate it. On Christmas Eve, while you're sleeping, Santa Claus will come down our chimney and place presents under it for each of you." 

"Why Santa Claus come down chimney and not door?" Gwen asked. 

John answered, "He travels in a sleigh pulled by eight flying reindeer. The sleigh will land on our roof and the chimney is the quickest way for him to get inside the house." 

Climbing off the sled, Connor said, "I wanna see flying waindeer!" 

"Only if you're awake when Santa arrives," Blair said as he and Jim shoveled the snow away from around the base of the tree. 

Krycek turned to Fox. "Didn't you ever open an X-File to investigate this fat man and his eight flying reindeer?" 

"I tried but Scully was very firm in her beliefs that rangifer tarandus can't fly, so she put her foot down on that one." 

"I doubt Walter would have approved your 302," John said. "After all, the North Pole was outside our jurisdiction." 

Fox grinned. "That never stopped me in the past." 

"And I've been meaning to have a long talk with you about that," Walter said, giving his lover a stern look. 

John started to chop down the tree while the men made sure the children weren't too close. 

"Daddy!" Joey tugged on Blair's snow pants. 

"What is it, Joey?" Blair asked as he lifted his son into his arms. 

"Aunty Laura screaming." 

"What makes you think she's screaming?" Blair asked. 

Jim turned in the direction of the Byers' home and listened. A smile spread across his face. "It looks like we'll find out the sex of Laura's and John's baby today." 

"She's in labor?" Blair asked. Then he glanced at his son. Joey was looking in the same direction as Jim. 

Fox put his arm around Blair's shoulders and smiled. "It looks like you have little Sentinel on your hands." 

Krycek looked at Joey. "So he can hear someone screaming twelve miles away? I suppose that means he can hear someone talking anywhere in our home." 

"I can," Jim said, "But I usually block out conversations, so I don't intrude on anyone's privacy." 

"But Joey doesn't know how to block," Krycek said as a sinking feeling made him queasy. 

"He'll learn when he gets older," Jim said, clueless over Krycek's concern. 

So Krycek filled him in. "Jim, I don't know about you and Blair, but when John and I do it our language isn't always PG." He and John never engage in sex until after Gwen had fallen asleep or they'd do it up in the hayloft or in the Japanese teahouse. Krycek was anxious to get their daughter moved into her own room as soon as possible. 

"I hadn't thought about that," Jim confessed. 

Walter pulled out a ball of twine from his pocket. "I guess we'll have to keep the profanity down until Joey learns to block." He and John wrapped twine around the tree so the branches were up making the tree easier for them to carry. 

Fox sighed, "I love it when you talk dirty to me." 

Walter leaned in and kissed Fox tenderly on the lips. "Let's get the tree home, and then I'll whisper dirty to you." 

~x~X~x~ 

The Raven 

Friday, December 19, 2003 

"Ooh fuck ... harder!" Methos cried out as Mac thrust into him. "Ooh." 

They were using the Japanese teahouse for a moment of private bliss. The pot-belly stove was lit and a teakettle was whistling loudly on top of it. 

The softness of the silk pillows against Methos' back was a wonderful contrast to the roughness of Mac's fingers stroking his cock. Their eyes locked as Mac's thrusts became more frantic. They were both so close. They'd been going at it for almost an hour. Methos shifted his legs from his lover's broad shoulders, down around his waist as the pleasure from being penetrated began to overwhelm him. One more thrust was all it took. Come spurted from the head of his cock, landing across his chest, and as his anal muscles tightened around MacLeod's shaft his lover grunted and released his seed before collapsing on top of his partner. 

Methos ran his fingers through Mac's sweat-dampened hair while he listened to the pounding of the other man's heart against his chest. "We should get married," Methos blurted out suddenly, and was as surprised by his words as his lover. 

Mac raised his head off his lover's chest and looked down at Methos as if he'd grown a second head. "Who are you and what did you do with my lover?" 

After five-thousand years, Methos would have thought he'd be able to admit to being in love. "I'm suddenly feeling very possessive of you." He reached up, cupped his hand behind Mac's head and pulled him in for a kiss. 

Mac passionately returned the kiss. His tongue dueled with his lover's for dominance before they both broke off the kiss breathlessly. 

"What you do to me, Highlander." 

Mac smiled. "Let's duck outside and clean up," he said, easing out, standing, and giving Methos a hand up. "Then we can have some tea before the water evaporates." 

"It's fucking cold out there." 

"You'll feel better clean." 

They walked outside naked and used the snow to clean the sticky come and sweat from their bodies. By the time they made it back in, they were both shivering with their teeth chattering. 

"This place needs an indoor shower," Methos griped. 

The clothes they had worn were in a tangled pile on the floor, while two black-silk kimonos hung on hooks by the door. Sonja had made them the kimonos at Methos' request. It made living in the crowded house with only two bathrooms easier. They no longer had to dress before going to use the bathroom in the morning. Pulling the robes on, Mac went to make the tea while Methos straightened the room after their rough bout of lovemaking. 

"Did you see the plans for the living space above the tavern?" Mac asked. He handed Methos a fragrant cup of tea then sat next to him on the large pillows. 

"Yes." Cupping his hands gratefully around the hot teacup, Methos smiled. "You've been helping with the plans. I recognized that the kitchen layout was identical to the one you had in Seacouver." 

The upper level of the stone mill was massive with six thousand square feet of space. They'd probably only use half the space for living quarters and find another use for the other half. 

"Joe's been mainly concerned with the pub design, so I decided to help with our home plans. We're going to build a deck off the living room that will jut out over the waterfall, and enlarge the window on that side to give us a nice view of the river and mountains. We plan to maintain the natural stone architecture of the mill on the outside." 

"Cool." Methos smirked. "We can fish off the deck and it won't interrupt cocktail hour." 

Mac sighed. "Okay, I know something that Joe wants to add that might interest you." 

"Hey, I'm interested with the whole project." Methos couldn't help being glib; it was part of his nature. 

Mac gave him a skeptical look. "Joe wants to add a microbrewery on the lower level so we can brew our own line of beer for the pub." 

"Now you're turning me on." Grinning, he took a sip of tea. 

"He wants to start by making three types of beers; a pale ale, a stout, and a wheat lager. Joe is trying to get seven brewing vessels. What we don't use in the pub, we'll bottle then barter or sell with the country's new currency." 

The new currency was being cast using gold, silver, nickel, and copper metals. Paper currency had been ruled out for the time being. 

"Where's he going to get the brewing equipment?" For once, Methos' interest was sparked. 

"Sean's wheeling and dealing. Our Ranger has some useful connections with military supply clerks and administrators. We'll want to install the stainless steel brewing vessels before we get the main construction underway." 

There was a knock on the door, then Naomi's lilting voice, "Are you two decent?" 

"Come in, Naomi," Mac said. 

She opened the door and stepped inside. "We have the Christmas tree set up and we're about to decorate it. I thought I'd check to see if you're interested." 

"We'll be along shortly." Mac smiled. 

"Sonja and Joe are making Coney dogs for dinner," Naomi continued. "We're helping him come up with some menu ideas that he can serve at his bar." 

"This bar is beginning to sound like an awful lot of work," Methos sighed. 

"Don't worry, dear." Naomi grinned. "Sean thinks Joe might be able to hire a cook and waitress from the Timberlake Resort cabins. I might be willing to help with the cooking and serving for free." 

"You aren't falling in love with our Joe, are you?" Methos asked. 

She blushed. "I've never met anyone like him. He's smart, caring, and passionate. I could sit for hours listening to him play the blues on his guitar. Joe makes all of my past boyfriends seem shallow by comparison." 

"She has it bad." Mac chuckled and stood. "We'll be back to the house after we dress." 

Naomi headed out the door then paused. "Oh, I almost forgot. Laura's in labor." 

"Life goes on," Methos said. 

~x~X~x~ 

The Otter 

Friday, December 19, 2003 

Byers held his wife's hand as he watched Liz scoop up their newborn baby off the mattress, clean out the baby's nose and mouth, then pat its bottom. The baby let loose a hearty cry. 

"Do you want to cut the umbilical cord? Liz asked. 

Byers paled; he was lucky he'd managed to get through the birth without fainting. "You do it, Liz." 

"So do you want to know the sex of your baby?" she teased. 

"Dammit, Liz," Laura said tiredly. "Give." 

"You have a beautiful baby girl. I'm going to get her cleaned up, then she's all yours." 

Frohike, Langly, and Bond had been waiting outside the bedroom; they opened the door when they heard the baby cry, and peered inside. "Can we come in?" 

Byers adjusted the blankets over his wife, leaned down, and kissed her before turning his attention back to his buddies. "Come in guys, and meet my daughter, Caroline Nightingale Byers." He and Laura had decided ahead of time on boy and girl names. 

"She's a real doll," Frohike said as he watched his girlfriend wash the newborn. 

"Not bad," Langly said. 

"She's going to be a heartbreaker," Bond said. 

Frohike stepped over to the bed. "Mulder radioed. He's going to come over tomorrow with Sonja, Wade, and Walter. The rest of the guys plan to take turns visiting over the next few days, so they don't overwhelm you." 

Byers looked at Frohike. His friend had been very patient throughout Laura's pregnancy, but he knew Frohike was looking forward to Liz moving in with him permanently. Now that the baby had arrived and once Laura was back on her feet, Liz would be moving. 

"Guys, Laura and I wanted to put up a small Christmas tree, but I haven't had the chance to find one yet," Byers said. "Do you think you can get one for us?" 

Bond smiled. "Just let me borrow your axe and Langly and I will have one set up in your parlor within the next two hours." 

"It's in the woodshed behind the house," Byers said. "Thanks, guys." 

After they left Laura gasped and passed the afterbirth. 

"Hold your daughter so I can clean the bed and Laura," Liz said, depositing the baby wrapped in a swaddling cloth into Byers' arms. 

With the baby held firmly, Byers walked over to the window so he could get a better look at her in the bright sunlight. She was so tiny. Laura wanted to have at least three children. They would have to add another bedroom onto their small home. At least they had friends that were more than willing to do that for them. Walter had already made the offer after he found out Laura was pregnant. 

Never in Byers' wildest dreams would he have imagined himself living off the land with the most beautiful and smartest woman he'd ever met. Laura made him forget all about the crush he had on Susanne Modeski. 

"We've done pretty well for ourselves," Frohike said as he joined Byers at the window. 

Byers looked at him and smiled. "I can't describe the joy I'm feeling right now." 

"So are you going to take the guys up on their offer to add an addition to your home?" 

"I think we'll put our name on their list," Byers said. "It sounds like next year they'll have their hands full with the Skinners' home and Joe's bar." 

Frohike patted Byers on the back. "I'm going into the kitchen to heat up the chicken and dumpling soup I brought." 

"Thanks, Mel." 

"No problemo." 

~x~X~x~ 

The Lion 

Saturday, December 20, 2003 

Snow pelted the outside bathroom window as Simon helped Wade hook up the plumbing to the third floor master bathroom. The former Cascade Police Captain was impressed by the skill the elderly man possessed. Downstairs, John Doggett was working with Daryl on the built-in buffet in the dining room. 

"What are the other guys doing this afternoon?" Simon asked. 

"Adam, Mac, Jim, and Alex have gone hunting. And Walter, Fox, Naomi and Sonja are making Christmas cookies while Blair and Joe are watching the children." Wade leaned back and admired his work. "Expect a batch of cookies tomorrow." 

"I'm looking forward to it." Simon smiled. "I'm not very good at cookie baking." 

"Neither am I or Walter," Wade said as he installed the final pipe. "Okay, it looks like you're all set to lay the tile." 

Boxes of ceramic tile were piled against the wall in Simon's bedroom. Now that the pipes were installed, he could tile and grout, then the toilet, bathtub and sink could be installed. This was the last big indoor project. Next he needed to get the chicken coop and barn built so he could get his donkeys back from the Gunmen's place. The guys were nice enough to let him house them in their barn. 

On New Years Eve, Simon was going to ask Jin to marry him. He had fallen in love with her from the first moment he'd laid eyes on her. She was beautiful. There was a big difference in their heights; with Simon at 6' 4" he towered over her petite 5' 2". But he was used to being a lot taller than the women he dated. 

"How are you and Daryl getting along living here?" Wade asked, putting the tools away. 

"Fine. It's been nice and peaceful." Simon smiled as they headed out of the room. "Would you like a cup of coffee?" 

"Thanks, but John and I better head back." 

Because of the snow they had ridden the horses to Simon's place. Wade wanted to get the horses back home and inside the warm, dry barn. He and John had tied them out of the wind along the side of the house. 

John had finished the buffet and was staining the wood with a light honey color. Daryl was studying his biology book at the dining room table. With schools no longer available, Simon had opted to home school his son. Daryl wanted to be a veterinarian, so after talking to Liz then visiting Sam Jones, the veterinarian in the valley, Simon was able to pick up the necessary books his son would need to study. Sam had offered to take Daryl on as an assistant the following summer. 

Unlike before, Simon didn't have to pressure his son to study. Daryl was so determined to become a veterinarian; he'd spend hours into the night studying. 

"I'll finish the staining," Simon offered. "You and Wade should be heading home." 

John handed Simon the staining cloth. "Jim and Blair will be out tomorrow; do you need them to bring anything?" 

"I could use some milk and venison." 

"Will do," John said. Walking over to the front door, he retrieved his coat off the hook. 

He and Wade pulled on their winter wear then said their goodbyes and hurried out into the snow. 

~x~X~x~ 

The Bear 

Monday, December 22, 2003 

"I'll see you and raise you five," Skinner said as he leaned forward in the leather chair to toss a chip into the center of the poker table. 

"Call," Joe said. 

John laid down his cards. "I'm out." 

Mac looked at Skinner then tossed in a blue chip. "Call." 

"Fold," Adam said, laying his cards on the table and reaching for his drink. 

All eyes turned to Naomi. "I'll see you and raise you twenty." 

Skinner face remained expressionless. "Call." 

"I'm out," Joe announced. 

"I'll call," Mac said. 

Skinner turned his cards over, showing he had three kings. 

Mac sighed, tossing his cards on the table to display two pairs. 

Naomi shrugged, showing she only had an ace high. That was it for her; she was out of chips. 

Skinner grinned as he pulled the chips into his pile. This evening they were playing for chore hours. Every twenty chips were worth an hour and they each started with forty chips. Skinner was up by eighty. With luck he'd be able to get out of ten hours of chores this week. In the winter, they only spent two hours a day on chores, except for the two people who had cooking and baby-sitter duty. 

"I play," Connor said as he climbed up on his dad's lap. 

Skinner looked down at his son as the boy settled on his lap, then he looked across the room at Fox who was sitting on the sofa with their two, nine-month-old daughters, reading a story to them. Fox raised his eyes from the book and smirked; as usual he was watching their son like a hawk and knew Connor was interrupting their Monday night of Texas hold'em. 

Okay, Skinner couldn't be too upset with Fox, since they had banned him from participating in Monday's poker night. His lover's eidetic memory and intuition gave him too great of an advantage. At times it seemed Fox knew exactly what cards everyone held. It was quite spooky. 

"Connor, Daddy will let you play if you don't tell everyone what cards I have," Skinner said. 

"I no tell." 

"Put this white chip into the center of the table." Skinner handed him the chip. 

"Why?" Connor held the chip as he stood with his little feet planted on his dad's thighs. 

"Everyone puts in one white chip to begin the hand." 

Connor leaned forward, placed the chip next to four other white chips already on the table. 

"Oops." He accidentally knocked over his dad's piles of chips. 

"That's all right, you can restack them," Skinner said, hoping that would occupy his son for a while. He picked up the two cards that Mac dealt him -- an ace of clubs and a seven of clubs. 

"Can I see?" Connor asked, forgetting the chips to look at the two cards. 

"Call," Adam said, putting in a white chip. 

Mac, Joe, and John folded. 

"I'll call," Skinner said. 

Mac laid the next three cards face up on the table: a queen of spades, nine of hearts, and a seven of diamonds. 

"Daddy, you have a seven on your card like that one!" Connor proclaimed. 

Skinner sighed. "Uncle Blair is doing a real good job of teaching you your numbers." 

"I can count to ten! Onetwothreefourfivesixseveneightnineten," Connor rattled off quickly then grinned proudly as he looked at the people around the table. 

"You're a smart boy," Joe said, giving the boy an approving grin. 

Adam smiled, and tossed a blue chip into the pile. 

Since Connor had given away Skinner's pair of sevens, he tossed in his cards. "Fold." 

Adam retrieved the chips and put them into his pile. 

It was Joe's turn to deal. Everyone anteed up. 

"Now if I let you see the cards you have to keep them a secret," Skinner said. 

Connor, standing on his dad's thigh leaned against the broad chest, and placed an arm around his dad's neck then whispered, "I no tell." 

The earnest expression on the boy's face tugged at Skinner's heart, so he gave Connor a peek at the cards, a ten and four of diamonds. "I'll call," he said tossing in a white chip. 

Mac, John, Joe called, and Adam folded. 

Joe dealt three cards face up on the table a two and eight of clubs, and a six of hearts. So much for the flush Skinner was hoping for but he still might get a straight. 

"Call." Skinner tossed in a white chip. 

Mac called and raised one white chip, and the others matched him. 

Joe laid another card on the table -- a five of diamonds. 

Skinner needed a seven or three for him to have a straight. 

Mac raised again, so either he had a straight, a pair, or a three of a kind. Joe and John folded, and Skinner called. 

Joe laid the final card face up on the table a seven of diamonds. Mac called and raised five. Skinner looked at his face; the man either had something or he was bluffing. 

"I'll see your five and raise you ten," Skinner said, tossing in a red chip and knowing that Mac only had enough to call his bet. 

"You'd better be bluffing," Mac grumbled as he tossed in five white and one blue chip then turned over the cards to show that he had three tens. 

Skinner smiled and showed his straight then retrieved the chips. 

"We win?" Connor asked. 

"We win, and you get to stack our chips." 

They continued to play until it was down to only Skinner and Adam. 

While Skinner could relate on a personal level to Joe from their experiences in 'Nam, and he liked Mac, Skinner found Adam to be an enigma. The man was at times a smart ass, quick-witted, intelligent, and mysterious. It could explain why Fox got along well with him -- two peas in a pod. 

Cradling Connor on his lap, Skinner dealt the cards. His son had fallen asleep. It was an hour past his bedtime. 

Skinner looked at his cards: a jack of clubs and a nine of hearts. 

They each called. Skinner dealt the next three cards face up -- an ace of diamonds, and a king and queen of spades. 

"I'll call and raise you forty," Adam said. 

"I'll see you, and raise you fifty," Skinner pushed the rest of his chips in. 

"Call." 

Skinner smiled to himself. For the first time Adam showed the slightest bit of uncertainty. If the man was bluffing, why would he call when all of their chips were now in the center of the table? Maybe he was doing what Skinner was -- hoping for a straight. 

Skinner dealt the next two cards face up - a four of clubs and a four of hearts. 

Adam sighed and turned over a four of spades and a two of spades. 

"Congratulations," Skinner said. He didn't really mind that he'd have to put in two extra hours of work this week -- the game had been fun and challenging. 

Fox walked over and lifted Connor off his lap. "Avi and Chloe are already in bed. I'll get him ready." Fox moistened his lips and gave Skinner a sultry look, adding, "Why don't you make us a couple of hot butter rums so we can spend a little time together before bed?" 

That look inflamed Skinner's ardor; he adjusted his growing arousal in his pants before standing and heading into the kitchen to make the hot butter rums. 

Connor was now able to climb out of his crib and Skinner would wake many mornings to find his son sleeping in the middle of the bed between him and Fox. So the two men had curtailed their lovemaking in their bedroom until they could get the children into their own rooms. 

The Japanese teahouse had become his and Fox's favorite place to make love. It afforded them the most privacy. Since they were competing for the place with Mac and Adam, Naomi and Joe, John and Alex, and Jim and Blair, the five couples had agreed to tie a red silk scarf to the doorknob when the place was being used for a romantic getaway and they'd tie a blue silk scarf if it was being used as a teahouse. 

The incense and fragrant tea did a good job of masking the musky scent of sex. 

Blair and Alex came in through the back door. 

"I think the elves in Santa's workshop have just completed their final toy," Blair announced. "Mm, that smells good. I think I'll make one for Jim and me." 

"Good idea, I'm sure John would like one," Alex said. 

"I'll leave the batter and the rum out then," Skinner said as he placed the two mugs of hot butter rum on a tray. He headed to his bedroom but stopped in the great room when he noticed Joe and Naomi sitting on the sofa in front of the fireplace. They were holding hands while looking at the Christmas tree set up in front of the bay window near the fireplace, but far enough away that a spark from the fire couldn't set the tree on fire. This year the guys had found several strings of white tree lights that they used to decorate it. The tree looked beautiful with their handmade ornaments and the new ones that Sonja, Wade, and Naomi had added. 

"There's hot butter rum mix and hot water in the kitchen if you'd like to make yourselves one," Skinner said. 

"That's a lovely suggestion," Naomi said. "Would you like one, Joe?" 

"Sure." Before Joe relinquished her hand to allow her to get up, he brought it up to his lips and kissed it. 

Skinner smiled at them then hurried into his and Fox's bedroom. He placed the tray on the coffee table in front of the fireplace then closed the door. Fox was just tucking Connor into his crib. The boy was still asleep. 

"Did you wake him to use the potty chair?" Skinner asked. 

"Yes. Although I think he was only half awake." Adjusting the screens in front of the cribs Fox then proceeded to undress. "Let's get comfortable. I can't very well touch you through all of that flannel and denim." 

"In my present state I don't think I can get my zipper down." Skinner sighed, "Besides it's not like I'm going to be able to touch you like I want to tonight." 

A smile lit up Fox's face as his gaze dropped to the bulge in Skinner's pants. "Get undressed, and pull on your robe, I've already taken care of that," Fox said as he pulled on his robe then picked up one of the hot buttered rums and took a sip. 

"Fox, you know we can't do it in here..." 

"Trust me." He smiled mysteriously. "Arrangements have been made." 

Skinner shrugged off his clothes then folded them so they wouldn't wrinkle, before pulling on his robe. 

"Don't forget your slippers." Fox picked up the other hot buttered rum and handed it to him. "I want to show you something." 

"Fox, we can't leave the kids all alone in the bedroom," Skinner said as he stepped into his slippers and took a sip of the beverage. "What if Connor climbs out of his crib?" 

When Fox opened the door, Blair was waiting on the other side with a book and a hot butter rum. 

"Thanks for watching the kids, Blair, we shouldn't be too long." 

"Don't hurry on my account, take all the time you need." 

"What's going on?" Skinner asked. 

"You're the one who wanted that hot tub -- I thought we could put it to some good use." Fox grinned as he opened the back door -- snow and cold air blew inside. 

That didn't stop Skinner as he set the hot butter rum on the kitchen counter then surprised Fox by scooping him off his feet and hurrying outside. 

Fox laughed and wrapped an arm around Skinner's neck, while trying not to spill his hot butter rum. "I love it when you go caveman." 

Since spending a lot of his time doing physical labor, from chopping wood to construction, Skinner had really developed his muscles. He was in better physical shape now than had been when he was a young marine, and was easily able to hand his husband's weight. 

Skinner turned to close the door, but Blair was already doing that for them. The young man smiled then headed back to watch their children. 

Carrying Fox around the corner and up the three steps to the wood deck where the hot tub was set up, Skinner noticed the steam rising off it. Illuminating the water and deck were six, oil-filled tike torches that cast a pale glow on the water and the snow-covered landscape. The wooden deck had been shoveled, and Skinner put two and two together as he set his lover back on his feet. 

"You had help from two of Santa's elves." 

Fox chuckled. "Alex's ears might be slightly pointy and Blair is close to the right height, but I don't think Santa would hire them." He shrugged off the robe and hung it on one of the six hooks on the wall. "They'd be too disruptive to the North Pole's fine ecosystem." 

Skinner could never get enough of looking at his lover's naked body. Fox was beautiful. He was still nursing their daughters, so his breasts were round and firm. Even without them his body was a work of art. Not overly muscular but nicely toned and taut, a lean runner's body with legs incredibly long and toned, not a trace of fat. Perfect feet and hands with long lean fingers, and that ass.... 

"Walter, get your butt in the water before you catch a cold." 

Fox was sitting in the water, sipping the hot butter rum while looking up at Skinner with an amused expression, which only made Skinner's erection harder regardless of the freezing temperature. 

Hanging up his robe, stepping out of his slippers and into the hot water, Skinner sank next to his husband in the hot water. He retrieved the mug from Fox's fingers and finished off its contents before pulling him into his arms. "I love you so much." 

"I hope you love me as much tomorrow, when we're cleaning the hot tub and filling it with fresh water," Fox said. 

"I'll love you even more tomorrow." 

They only used the hot tub for soaking, so it didn't require cleaning more than once a week. But this was the first time they were using it to have sex in, so it would need a thorough cleaning. 

Skinner moaned as Fox straddled his thighs and pushed their erections together. 

Snow drifted down around them while a cold wind howled through the trees. Snowflakes settled softly upon Fox's hair and eyelashes before quickly melting as the steam rose up around them. 

With Fox straddling Skinner's thighs, it placed his lover's breasts in the perfect position. Cupping Fox's round buttocks under the water, Skinner eagerlytraced around a nipple with the tip of his tongue and was rewarded by a drip of delicious fluid. Skinner felt a frisson beneath his fingertips as his lips enclosed the nipple; he started sucking and soon milk filled his mouth. The sensation turned his cock to granite and he wanted to ram it into his lover. Instead, he moved to the other breast. 

"You better enjoy them while you can," Fox said in a husky, aroused voice. "I'm weaning the twins next month." 

Skinner knew Fox enjoyed being touched this way; even before he'd developed breasts, his nipples were the most sensitive part of his body other than his penis, which was currently poking into Skinner's belly. While Skinner enjoyed the breasts, he wouldn't be too disappointed when they returned to normal. His lover usually kept them tightly bound when around Skinner's parents and their guests, and Skinner knew that was uncomfortable for Fox. Next year at this time, the men should have this place to themselves, and Skinner was determined that they'd have no more long-term houseguests. 

The snow was falling heavier as he bent Fox over the side of the hot tub and entered him with one smooth thrust from behind. As Skinner enjoyed the tight warmth surrounding his shaft and the moans of pleasure coming from Fox, his subconscious monitored the heavy snowfall. In the distance he heard a crack of thunder, not a good sign during a snowstorm. 

Fox reach back, grabbed Skinner's wrist and moved his hand to his aching erection. Skinner wrapped his fingers around Fox's long shaft and started jerking him off, reminding the larger man of the strokes he used when milking. Despite his desire to pleasure his husband Skinner's mind briefly wandered to ... next spring and their plans to have their cows artificially impregnated to increase their milk production. 

His thoughts were interrupted. Fox must have been on a hair-trigger since it only took a few pulls and Skinner felt the tight squeeze around his cock as Fox reached orgasm, shooting his come into the water. Skinner wasn't ready to end this just yet so he squeezed the base of his shaft to prevent himself from coming. As the muscles in Fox's ass relaxed, Skinner resumed thrusting. He enjoyed being part of Fox this way. 

He kept it up for another fifty minutes until Fox reached another orgasm. It was only then that Skinner allowed himself the sweet pleasure of release. 

After several minutes of catching their breath, they relaxed back in the hot water and in each other's arms while enjoying the snow falling around them. At this moment life seemed perfect to Skinner as he sat blissfully sated with the pleasant warmth of his lover beside him. 

"Sweetheart, I've been looking over the survey maps and marking areas of flat land on our property," Skinner said. "There's a twenty-acre plot a mile from us to the east. I think we should clear that land and use the trees for my parents' log home, ours and the Byers' future addition, and that fishing cabin. We can then plant alfalfa for our cows on ten acres and use the rest for crops." 

Fox rested his head on Skinner's shoulder. "There's enough timber on those twenty acres for over a dozen log homes. I'd hate to waste those trees for firewood." 

They primarily used deadwood and fallen trees for firewood. The guys liked clearing away all the dead trees and brush around their property; there was less chance of a forest fire that way. Even though their area of the Blue Ridge Mountains wasn't prone to forest fires; because it was usually too wet they still wanted to take every precaution. 

"We're going to need the farmland. With twenty acres we can grow more than enough alfalfa for six milking cows and crops for our own use." 

"Six cows?" Fox lifted his head and looked into his lover's eyes. 

"We'll need the extra milk with five growing kids. Right now we no longer have enough milk to make cheese." 

"Once our houseguests move out it should help, and Simon, Frohike, and Byers are going to each get a milking cow this summer, so we won't have to supply them with milk. And they plan to plant a field with alfalfa between Frohike's and the Byers' place where their cows can graze. Simon was hoping his cow could use our alfalfa field." 

"I know that, Fox," Skinner sighed. "We still have my parents who will need to get their milk from us, and you wouldn't believe how much milk a growing child will drink. Plus if we can make extra cheese, we could use it in trade." 

"Okay, but we'll need to add on a second silo for the winter and expand the barn." 

"We could leave the barn for the cows and build a stable next to it for our horses." 

"Have you talked to anyone else about this?" Fox asked. 

"No. I thought I'd float it by you first." 

"I love it when you plan for our future." Fox smiled and kissed him. "Why don't you write up your plan and we'll present it to the guys?" 

"I'll do that after Christmas." Two of the oil-filled tiki torches had gone out and the other four were close to going out. Skinner looked outside the hot tub and down at the wood deck. "I can't see our slippers." They were now buried beneath six inches of new snow and it was still falling heavily. 

Fox started laughing. "We'll have to dig for them then make a mad dash for the house. We can dry off when we get inside." 

Another torch went out as they stood; Skinner opened the drain on the hot tub. They had a forty-foot hose that ran from it to a field next house. Fox reached for their snow-covered robes before stepping out of the tub; they shook off the snow then once out of the water they pulled on the robes and felt around for their slippers. Finding them they hurried barefoot the dozen of steps to the house. 

They were both laughing when they ran inside -- wet, cold, and covered with snow. 

The light over the kitchen sink was on, a fire blazed in the large fireplace in the great room, and a dim light came from their bedroom doorway. All the other lights were out; everyone had turned in for the night. They stepped into the bathroom, hung their wet robes from the hooks, then dried themselves and wrapped towels around their waists. Fox didn't mind Blair seeing his breasts but he walked behind Walter in case Joe, Mac, or Adam should step out of their room. 

"Thanks for watching them," Fox said as they entered the bedroom. Blair was sitting cross-legged on the middle of the bed with Connor sleeping under the covers on Skinner's side. Their son must have gotten up and refused to allow Blair to put him back in the crib. Connor could be pretty stubborn about such things. 

"No problem. Tomorrow, um I mean today, I only have to clean out the barn, so I can sleep in." 

"We're all going to have to go out and shovel later today," Skinner said as he pulled on his flannel pajamas. 

"Is it still snowing?" 

"It's coming down pretty good," Fox said. 

"Cool. We'll have a white Christmas," Blair said. Gathering his book he headed out of the bedroom. 

Skinner checked on their daughters before moving Connor to the center of the bed then crawling under the covers. Fox put another log on the fire, turned off the bedside lamp, then climbed into bed. The two men kissed goodnight over their son's sleeping body then settled down beside him and were soon soundly asleep. 

~x~X~x~ 

The Wolf 

Tuesday, December 23, 2003 

When Sandburg finally awoke that morning, he was alone in bed, lying comfortably nestled under several layers of blankets. He rolled onto his back and stared up at the high log ceiling. It was hard to judge the time of day; the sun had risen but the room wasn't glowing from the bright sunlight pouring in through the windows. Throwing off the blankets, the young man shivered as he climbed out of bed. The bedroom was chilly, so he quickly put a log on the ebbing embers in the fireplace then looked out the window. It was still snowing quite heavily. 

After making the bed, Sandburg pulled on his robe and stepped into his slippers. Grabbing the clothes he was going to wear that day, he hurried out of the bedroom and up the stairs to the second floor to use the bathroom. He crossed the loft and noticed that his mother's bed was empty. Naomi had chosen a bed with a canopy and had hung heavy fabric drapes from it so she could close the drapes when she went to bed to provide her with even more privacy. Between that and the privacy screens, the loft felt quite homey. The rich drapery fabric was currently tied around the bedposts and the bed was made. The sound of an engine drew Sandburg over to the window. 

He looked down on the farmyard. Mac was using the tractor to clear the yard while Jim and John used shovels to clear paths to the workshop and root cellar. Walter and Adam were shoveling out the chicken run. With the snow coming down so heavily they'd have to go out again in a few hours just to keep up with it. 

This morning, Sandburg was supposed to clean the barn and use the wheelbarrow to haul the dirty hay to the snow-covered compost pile, so he'd better hurry while the path Mac was plowing was still free of snow. After he used the toilet and dressed in his old work clothes, the young man hurried downstairs to his bedroom to hang up his robe. 

In the kitchen, Alex was working with Sonja and Naomi, while Joe and Wade did the laundry. Fox was in the great room with the kids, keeping them entertained with hand puppets that Sonja and Liz had made. Out of all the men, Fox was particularly good with children. He didn't seem to feel any restraints about behaving in an undignified manner if it got a laugh out of the children. At the moment, Fox was making ridiculous voices to match the two puppets he had on his hands. Joey in particular was laughing and clapping with delight. 

"Good morning, sweetie," Naomi said, giving Sandburg a peck on the cheek. "Would you like breakfast?" 

"No. I need to clean out the stalls in the barn while the path to the compost pile is free of snow." 

Sonja added two ham hocks to a large stockpot that was on the range then poured in two cups of dried split peas and a few handfuls of dried vegetables. "Lunch will be ready in about an hour and a half, so hurry back." 

"I will," Sandburg said as he pulled on his winter gear then hurried out the back door into the snow. 

His feet crunched on the hard, compacted snow as he ran to the barn. The large barn doors were closed to keep in the heat, so he used the small door. Usually the body heat from the large animals kept the space warm, but with the sharp drop in temperature, that wouldn't be enough. Fortunately someone had lit the potbelly stove and was keeping the barn nice and toasty. Sandburg was used to the smell of the horses and cows and their waste. They now had six stalls in the barn for two horses and two cows. The barn once had a workshop in the back; they had cleared it out so they could get another two stalls in the barn. Sandburg moved Bambi into one of the empty stalls then started shoveling the waste into the wheelbarrow. Once he laid fresh straw in the stall, Sandburg moved her back and repeated the process with the next stall. He made two trips to the compost pile with the dirty hay. 

Jim came into the barn to give him a hand with the remaining stall. "I radioed Sean this morning. It looks like we're going to get a few more feet of snow over the next three of days before this storm moves on." 

Sandburg frowned. "So I take it that means our friends won't be able to make it here on Christmas day." 

"Probably not," Jim said. "The winds are supposed to pick up late tomorrow and we'll be under white-out conditions on Christmas Eve." 

"I guess we'll have to wait to see them on New Years." Sandburg sighed; he always looked forward to hosting holiday parties for their friends. 

"Look on the bright side," Jim said. 

"What bright side?" 

Jim moved into Sandburg's personal space and looked him in the eye then pinched his buttock. 

"Ouch!" Sandburg reached back and rubbed his butt. 

"There'll be more Christmas goose for us," Jim quipped and quickly covered Sandburg's mouth with his own, thoroughly kissing him while stifling the scolding the younger man was about to give. The shovel slipped from Sandburg's fingers as his hands went behind Jim's head and held him in place. 

"This wheelbarrow full of shit can wait," Sandburg said. "Let's go play in the hay loft." 

Sandburg hurried up the ladder with Jim close behind. The loft had been used for this purpose many times in the past and there were a couple of clean blankets folded over the railing. They spread one of the blankets over a pile of straw then stripped -- coats, hats, jeans, boots all ended up in a pile as the two men fell on each other hungrily. 

Since being infected by the alien virus, Jim was no longer allergic to hay or the many other things that had ignited his heightened senses. Sandburg liked that since it opened up more areas where they could become intimate. 

"Kneel on all fours and spread 'em," Sandburg ordered. It was his turn to make Jim scream. 

Once Jim was in position, Sandburg kneeled behind him and used his tongue to moisten Jim's crease and anus. With a little coaxing Jim's anal muscles loosened. 

"Ooh God," Jim moaned. 

Sandburg chuckled. "I haven't risen to the level of a deity yet." He positioned the head of his cock against the small opening and pushed inside. His husband let out another moan of pleasure and pushed his ass back, wantonly forcing more of Sandburg's shaft into him. 

The young man started slowly fucking his lover, enjoying the exquisite pleasure of the tight heat encasing his shaft. He wondered what it would be like to fuck Jim's other opening while they were in animal form, which led his mind to wander to other thoughts. "Jim, I want us to wait until after we have Sonja's and Wade's home built, and our new addition done before we try to have another child." 

Jim looked under his arm at Sandburg. "Chief, that will be two years from now. Do you really want to wait that long?" 

"What's the hurry?" Sandburg said, thrusting back inside his lover. "Let's wait until Joey's a bit older and we have the large construction projects finished." 

"Fine, we'll wait." Jim growled, "Now, shut up and fuck me." 

Sandburg started thrusting into his lover harder and faster. He twisted his hips as he thrust in, nailing Jim's prostate. The impact caused Jim to climax. His anal muscles tightened and soon Sandburg was following him over the abyss. 

Chuckling, the younger man pulled out and collapsed on the blanket beside his lover. "There's nothing quite like a quickie before noon." Sandburg's stomach growled. Sex always made him hungry, and it didn't help that he hadn't eaten yet. 

"C'mon, I'm starving, too." Jim looked at him and smiled. "Let's get dressed, dump the shit, and head inside." Standing, he helped Sandburg to his feet. "Sonja is making split pea soup for lunch and you know that's my favorite." 

"I know. You should have seen the size of the ham hocks she added." A hot bowl of soup would really hit the spot right now. They dressed and headed down the ladder. Jim opened the barn door so Sandburg could wheel out the wheelbarrow. Already the snow had piled up, making it hard to push the wheelbarrow through it. 

After he returned the wheelbarrow to the barn, Jim added more firewood to the potbelly stove. "We're going to have to take turns keeping the firing going. Fox came out here before sunrise and lit the stove." The stove also provided heat to the chicken coop through a grate in the wall. If the fire went out, they could lose all of the chickens. 

They hurried across the yard and into the house. 

~x~X~x~ 

The Dog 

Doggett sat at the counter eating a hearty bowl of split pea soup. His muscles were sore from shoveling the heavy snow and they had to go back outside in a few hours to shovel again. Out of all the stuff they had scavenged, they'd never thought to get a snow blower. Mostly it was because gasoline was limited, but now there was an ample supply. He glanced at the door as Blair and Jim came in from outside. Snow blew in through the doorway before they could get the door closed. 

They hung up their coats and snow-encrusted hats before taking off their boots. 

"You boys look frozen," Sonja said. "Take a seat at the counter and I'll get you each a large bowl of hot soup." 

"Thanks, Sonja. We're going to clean up in the bathroom first," Jim said. 

Doggett watched them with an amused expression. He could always tell when someone had gotten some. 

Naomi was baking gingerbread for a gingerbread house that the toddlers were going to help decorate after their nap. She'd also made some gingerbread people. 

Over at the dining room table, Walter, Joe, Mac, and Wade ate while they discussed the latest plans for the old mill. Doggett smiled. By the time they were ready to start construction they'd have those blue prints refined down to where the last nail went. Currently they were discussing adding on an outside terrace with a cobblestone floor that would have a view of the river and falls, so the pub's patrons could sit outside in the summer and fall. 

At the far end of the table, Fox had babysitting duty and was seeing that all five children ate their lunches. The twins were in highchairs, while the other three had moved up to booster seats. Doggett decided that babysitting was the hardest chore on their small farm. He looked at his daughter. Gwendolyn was so excited about the anticipated arrival of St. Nick, the following night, she couldn't stop asking questions about him. Doggett couldn't wait to see her face on Christmas morning when she saw all of the presents under the tree. 

Jim and Blair joined Doggett at the counter and Sonja place a bowl of soup in front of each of them. 

"This smells so good," Jim said as he picked up a spoon and tasted the soup. "Mm, Sonja, you are hands down the best chef in these parts. I'd pick you over Emeril any day." 

The old woman beamed at the compliment. "Would you like some buttered bread with the soup?" 

"If it isn't too much of a bother," Jim said. 

"It's no bother, dear." Sonja looked at Blair. "Would you like some buttered bread, Blair?" 

"Yes ... please," Blair said, "The soup is really delicious." 

Sonja smiled. "I plan to make your favorite soup tomorrow." 

Blair beamed. "Really?" 

"Really." 

Doggett shook his head and smiled. Walter's mother could really spoil them. 

Alex came stomping in through the backdoor, carrying a canvas sack and letting more snow and cold air into the house. 

Doggett decided they would add a vestibule off the back door to prevent the cold air and snow from entering the house. They had discussed it last winter, but had been too busy last summer with Simon's log home and Frohike's addition. 

"I can't remember ever seeing it snow this heavy," Alex said. "Not even in Russia." 

Sonja hurried over and took the canvas sack from him. "Thanks, Alex." 

"You're welcome." He smiled. 

She carried the sack over to the sink and placed it on the counter then pulled out a container of fresh mushrooms, three onions, a dozen potatoes that she placed in the sink, and a jar of applesauce. She and Alex were making a large venison roast for dinner; the mushrooms, Doggett assumed were for the gravy. Mac and Adam had bagged a ten-point buck yesterday morning. Doggett had helped the two men dress the deer. That morning, Naomi and Alex used a meat grinder to make venison summer sausages from the less desirable portions of the meat. 

Alex hung up his coat in the mud area by the door. Doggett was granted a few seconds to admire his lover's round denim covered ass before Alex walked over to the sink to start peeling potatoes. With Fox watching Gwen that afternoon, maybe Doggett could coax Alex upstairs for a quickie. Not that Alex ever required much coaxing; the man seemed to be always ready for a tumble between the sheets. 

"Naptime," Fox announced. 

"No nap, Daddy!" Connor whined. 

"Do you want to help decorate the gingerbread house?" 

"Yes!" 

"We're not decorating it until after your nap." 

"Can Jam nap with me?" 

"Yes." 

They had given three of the kittens to their friends a couple of days ago. They were now allowing Tiger and her two remaining kittens out of the greenhouse. 

Fox helped the toddlers down from the chairs. Walter stood and gave him a hand with the twins. 

Generally, Walter's and Fox's bedroom was used for the children's naps. The toddlers were put on the big bed and the twins in the cribs. 

Adam strolled into the kitchen from the laundry room; he had the male Maine Coon kitten riding on his shoulder. At Naomi's amused look, Adam shrugged. "We're bonding. Besides, I might want to adopt Kronos here for our pub to keep the mice under control." 

"Why are you calling him Kronos?" Naomi asked. 

"Because he has his claws dug into my shoulder." 

Joe stood and with the help of his cane walked over to Adam then lifted the kitten off his shoulder. "Kronos would make a good mouser. Male Maine Coons get quite large and are good hunters." 

Doggett carried the empty soup bowl over to the sink and set it on the counter. Alex had four potatoes peeled and was putting the peelings into a coffee tin, for the chickens, and the peeled potatoes into a pot of cold water. 

"Do you think you can take a break after you peel the potatoes?" Doggett asked. 

"I can take a longer break if you help me peel them," Alex said. 

Doggett got the extra peeler from the drawer and stood next to his partner at the sink. Alex's proximity and scent spiked Doggett's arousal. He had to concentrate on peeling so he wouldn't cut himself. With the two of them working as a team, they made quick work of the potatoes. Then Alex filled the sink with hot soapy water and put the dirty soup bowls and silverware in to soak. 

"Sonja, I'll be back shortly to wash the lunch dishes," Alex said. 

"Take your time, dear, I have everything under control," Sonja said as she puttered around the kitchen. 

The two men took the spiral staircase up to their bedroom then closed the door. Doggett started when Alex suddenly pushed him up against the door and kissed him hard and wantonly. The former FBI agent didn't hesitate to return the kiss -- they were both going to have bruised lips by the time they finished. While they kissed, they pulled at each other's clothing, toeing off shoes and yanking down zippers -- only briefly separating to pull their sweaters and undershirts over their heads before falling back on each other hungrily. 

Finally tumbling naked upon the mattress, they moved into a sixty-nine position. They both knew instinctually what the other man wanted and needed. Doggett moaned as Alex's lips wrapped around the head of his cock. While Doggett looked appreciatively at his lover's hardened member, the purple head glistening with pre-come, he licked around it then toyed with the sensitive slit using the tip of his tongue. Alex moaned in pleasure. 

As Doggett took more of Alex's shaft into his mouth, he felt the throbbing vein on the underside. They were both good cocksuckers, having plenty of practice over the two years they'd been together. Doggett slowly teased Alex by bringing him within seconds of coming then pulling back -- not the smartest move with his shaft down his lover's throat, and Alex got back at him by squeezing the base of Doggett's shaft. 

They kept up the exquisite torture until Doggett finally allowed Alex to climax and was rewarded with spurts of come into his mouth that he greedily swallowed. Doggett thought he'd pass out when Alex swallowed his shaft; the sheer tightness and warmth released one of the most intense orgasms that Doggett had experienced in his life. 

Doggett rolled onto his back and sighed happily. 

Alex crawled up to lie beside him and laid his hand over Doggett's heart. "I really needed that." 

"Me, too." Doggett turned his head and looked at Alex -- the young man looked truly debauched. "I suppose we should get back downstairs. I want to go outside and check on the chickens and add some more wood to the potbelly stove." 

Alex stopped Doggett from getting out of bed with a hand on his arm then a gentle kiss to Doggett's swollen lips. "I love you, John boy." 

Doggett smiled and kissed him back. The chickens could wait a few more minutes. 

~x~X~x~ 

The Frog 

Frohike thanked God for the umpteenth time that Jimmy Bond was living with them. Otherwise they'd never have gotten the chicken run shoveled or a path cleared to the barn. Their goats needed milking and Simon's donkeys needed to be fed, and the potbelly stove had to be kept stoked. This was the worse storm that Frohike could ever remember. According to Sean, they'd have white out conditions by the next afternoon and through Christmas morning. 

"What are you doing, Melvin?" Jimmy asked, leaning against the shovel. 

"I'm securing one end of this rope to the house and the other end to the barn, so we don't get lost once the winds pick up." 

"But the barn's only a hundred feet from the house." 

"A hundred feet is pretty far when you can only see three feet in front of your face." Frohike crossed the farmyard and tied the other end next to the side door leading into the barn. They'd have to keep the large barn doors closed until after the storm passed. "Langly, give me a hand with the firewood. I want a three-day supply in the barn and house. By tomorrow we're not going to be able to reach the woodpile." 

Liz walked out of the barn carrying the steel milk container full of goat's milk. They made goat's cheese from the milk and used it for cooking. Liz also used the goat's milk to make soap. She and Laura got together once a month and made a large batch using goat's milk and honey, and they added different fragrances to the soap. Now that the aliens were gone and it looked like they'd be staying, they planned on getting a cow in the spring. Frohike much preferred the taste of cow's milk for drinking and cooking. 

He was rather disappointed that they wouldn't be able to make it over to their friends' home on Christmas. Frohike would have loved to see the children and given them the gifts he, Liz, Langly, and Jimmy had made for them. 

"We really need to ask Sean to find us some snow blowers," Langly grumbled as they walked over to the woodpile already halfway buried in snow. 

"Next year we'll add it to the list," Frohike said as he filled the canvas sling with eight logs, then hefted it over his shoulder. "I think we should get our own tractor." 

Once they had the wood supply in the house and barn stocked, Frohike headed inside to make dinner. Liz, bless her soul, tried to help, but she was as much a disaster in the kitchen as Langly. Being a surgeon, she was good with a knife, so Frohike usually had her peeling potatoes or chopping vegetables. 

Late yesterday afternoon, Adam and Mac had dropped off a venison tenderloin roast. Frohike was preparing it for dinner. The next day they could have sandwiches with the leftovers. The tenderloin was the best cut of meat on the deer, and Mac and Adam mentioned they had dropped off the other tenderloin to the Banks. The two men were heading over to the Byers with four venison porterhouse steaks. 

This was what Frohike loved about their life on the mountain -- the sense of being part of an extended family, with everyone looking out for each other. 

Liz walked over and put her arms around him. "I'm going up to the loft to sew, unless you need me to help with anything." 

He smiled and hugged her back. "No. I'll call you when dinner is ready." 

The sewing loft and their master bedroom and bath had come out better than Frohike had imagined. It was nice to have that private haven for him and Liz. Not to mention the fact that Langly and Jimmy enjoyed having their own rooms. 

Frohike seasoned the tenderloin then put it in the oven along with four baking potatoes. He was also serving green beans. 

Rocky sulked into the kitchen, looked up at him, and meowed. The cat hated snow and hated being stuck inside. 

Frohike knew the cat wasn't hungry. "Don't look at me like that. The snow ain't my fault." 

Rocky walked over to the door leading down to the root cellar then looked back at Frohike. 

"Would you like to go down there and hunt?" Frohike asked as he opened the door. Since they had gotten the cat, their root cellar and house had been free of mice. Rocky still liked to go down and investigate. Most of his time was spent hunting mice in the barn and fields, excluding the times he went on the prowl for Mulder's cat Tiger for other reasons. 

Langly was working in their publication room. Having electricity again enabled them to set up a couple of desktop computers, although they no longer had Internet access. Frohike hoped that they'd be able to get online with a wireless system as soon as the military launched new communication satellites to replace those destroyed by the aliens. The blond gunman was working on this month's addition of the Magic Mountain. A couple of months ago, Frohike had dropped off digital cameras to all of their subscribers, the majority of who had electricity so they could keep the batteries charged. Ellison and Doggett had found the cameras on one of their scavenger trips, along with a large load of toilet paper. 

Frohike had requested photos of special events such as weddings, births, anniversaries, and photos of interests. Their subscribers could bring the camera to Frohike and he'd download the images and publish them in the magazine. He had one section entitled photos of the month where he printed the ten best photos. This month they had a photo of Caroline Byers and her two proud parents in the birth announcement section, along with two other birth announcements. In the November issue they had photos of the Halloween party with the children in their costumes. Frohike hoped to do an expanded issue in January to show their neighbors Christmas and Hanukah celebrations. This blizzard would be the lead story. 

In the spring, Byers wanted to do a feature story about Joe and the old mill that he planned to turn into a tavern and brew house. They hoped to find volunteers to help with the construction in exchange for credits at the bar. 

Frohike looked into the parlor at their beautifully decorated Christmas tree. He felt totally at peace for once in his life. With the aliens gone and government in shambles the Gunmen had a few years which to put their feet up and not have to worry about government conspiracies. 

~x~X~x~ 

The Panther 

Wednesday, December 24, 2003 

It was one o'clock in the morning and Ellison was in the barn adding firewood to the stove. They were taking turns. It would be Mac's turn in three hours. At first light they'd need to shovel again. Since the last time they shoveled another two feet of snow had fallen. 

Frohike had radioed last night and advised them to secure a rope from their house to the barn. Walter did that and also secured a rope to their workshop, in case they had to get to it for some reason. Ellison didn't need to use the rope on this trip to the barn; the wind wasn't blowing that hard yet. 

Last night after the children were put to bed, the men had smuggled in the toys and presents from the workshop and hid them in the front hall closet and the radio alcove. Their kids were still too young to snoop, so there wasn't much of a chance that they'd find the presents before operation Santa Claus could get underway. 

In addition to the toys, Wade had them haul in the gift he'd made for them into the great room. He had covered it with a tarp and secured the tarp with ropes. The thing weighed a ton; literally, it was ten-foot tall and had a four-foot in diameter tree trunk base. The base was the only part they were allowed to see. The elder Skinner had done most of the carving outside using a chainsaw; then he had them move it into the workshop so he could do some detail work with his chisel set. He kept the carving covered whenever anyone was around. Because of its size, they had to carry it around to the front door to get it inside the house; it wouldn't fit through the smaller back door. 

Ellison was anxious to see what Wade had made for them. The Sentinel had seen the two of the other carvings that Wade had made for Ranger Smith and the Banks. They were masterfully done. The one for Sean was a twelve-foot tall grizzly bear, standing on its hind legs and looking menacing. Sean had used his helicopter to fly it back to the station, where they helped him move it to stand beside the road leading into the station's parking lot. The Ranger loved the carving. Ellison couldn't remember seeing the man happier. The one Wade made for the Banks was a nine-foot tall wild stallion rearing up on its hind legs, Wade also made Simon a carved wooden plaque to mount by the front door that read "The Banks." It had a three-dimensional carved lion lounging under the name. Wade had planned to give that to Simon on Christmas. The elder Skinner was working on a carving for the Gunmen's place. 

Leaving the barn, Ellison had to trudge through two more inches of fresh snow on top of the other twenty-four. His back was still aching from shoveling three times yesterday. Once inside the house, he removed his winter wear then went to add more wood to the fireplace in the great room before heading back to his and Blair's bedroom. A nice fire blazed in the hearth. Blair was sleeping on his side facing the middle of the bed with Joey snuggled against his chest. Their son was afraid of the sound of the wind howling through the trees. 

Stripping down to his long underwear, Ellison climbed into bed and placed a hand on the back of Joey's head -- his hair was getting so long. It was about time for Joey's first haircut, if Ellison could only convince Blair to let him get it cut. Walter had cut Connor's hair last night. 

Ellison studied his husband's face -- so young and beautiful. If Fox were right, Blair would remain forever young, and then so would Ellison and the other men. It was probably a good thing they lived in the backwoods. 

~x~X~x~ 

The Falcon 

MacLeod hefted a shovelful of snow over the chicken wire fence and out of the chicken run. When he came outside to shovel two hours ago, the snow had been over the top of the three-foot high wire fence. Fox, Alex, Blair, and Jim were helping him shovel, while Methos manned the tractor. Walter had cooking duty and John had baby-sitting duty. Methos had to untie the rope going from the house to the barn so he could plow the farmyard. He was using the tractor to push the snow far away from the house in the direction the wind was blowing, in the hope that it wouldn't blow back into the yard once the winds picked up in the afternoon. 

Naomi stepped out of the house carrying a wicker basket. She had been watching them from the window and as soon as they cleared a path to the chicken coop, she hurried outside to collect the eggs. They were feeding the chickens inside the coop. 

The two months MacLeod had been there, he had found to be quite enjoyable and relaxing. He was glad that Joe had decided to settle down in this area -- it would make a good home base. The Highlander liked and respected the people living here. It had been somewhat disturbing that Fox knew about him and Methos being immortals, but Fox hadn't told anyone yet, including his husband. 

After taking two breaks to warm up in the barn, they finished shoveling a couple of hours later. The wind was blowing harder so Methos quickly reattached the rope to the barn. 

When they walked inside the house, Sonja had a large pot of Cuban black bean soup ready for them. 

MacLeod's fingers were stiff from the cold as he took a seat at the counter with Fox, Alex, Blair, Jim, and Methos. Sonja scooped fluffy white rice into the bottom of each soup bowl before ladling the black bean soup over it, while Walter sliced a loaf of warm crusty bread and placed it in a basket on the counter for them. 

"You guys look cold and exhausted," he commented. 

"I'm going to join the kids for naptime," Fox said as Sonja placed a bowl of soup in front of him. "Thanks." He gave her a tired smile. 

"I think you boys should rest up for the Christmas Eve party," Sonja said. 

MacLeod smiled. "I'm not tired so if you need help preparing for tonight, I'm all yours." As an immortal, MacLeod was able to recuperate quickly. His aching muscles were already better and his fingers no longer stiff. 

"Thank you, Mac. You can help Walter make the eggnog and punch." 

Over the past week, they'd been making Christmas cookies, bars, and candy. A couple of days ago, Wade had received a beef tenderloin roast from Sean as a thank you gift for the large woodcarving. Thus, Sonja was making Beef Wellington that night. She already had it wrapped in pastry dough and chilling inside the refrigerator. On Christmas they were having a goose with corn bread stuffing. If their friends could have made it, they had planned on cooking a leg of lamb in addition to the goose. 

MacLeod glanced around as he ate. Joe and Wade were in the great room discussing the woodcarving that Wade wanted to make for the pub. With it being beside a river, Joe wanted a nautical theme and was even considering naming the pub Seacouver in memory of their former home. The kitten that Methos had named Kronos, was sitting behind Joe's head on the back of the sofa nipping at his hair. 

The children were in the bedroom taking their naps. John walked into the kitchen and leaned against the counter. He looked at Blair and smirked. "Joey wants his hair cut short like Connor's." 

Blair glared at Walter. "If Walter hadn't made a show of giving Connor his first haircut, my son would be perfectly happy with his hair the way it is." 

"Chief, I'm not happy with our son's hair being so long," Jim said. "He's a little boy, and he would be more comfortable with short hair." 

"I think Joey looks cute with long hair," Naomi said. 

"I think he'd look cuter with short hair," Jim said. 

"I suppose you should go with what Joey wants," Naomi said. 

Blair sighed. "Okay, we'll cut his hair." 

"Are you sure, Chief?" Jim asked. 

"Yes," Blair sighed, "It'll always grow back." 

MacLeod glanced at the men. Jim, John, and Alex had short hair, Blair's hair was past his shoulders, and Fox's hair was shoulder length. He was wearing it tied back, similar to how MacLeod was wearing his own hair. Walter and Sonja seemed to be the ones who cut everyone's hair. MacLeod found out that Sonja once owned a hair salon. 

After lunch, some of the men went to take a nap while MacLeod helped Walter make the eggnog. 

While they worked side-by-side, MacLeod decided to try to get to know Walter better. He'd already found out some things about the man from talking to John, but the former FBI agent wasn't willing to discuss anything that he thought was too personal. "So how long have you known Fox?" 

"I've known about him since 1987, but I didn't get to know him until I became his direct supervisor in 1994." Walter smiled. "Fox was the best agent the FBI ever had." 

"So he must have been an easy agent to supervise." 

Walter snorted. "Fox was placed under my supervision because the FBI hierarchy wanted him to be reined in and controlled. They thought I'd be the one best suited for the job. If he weren't so damned good at solving cases, they would have thrown him out of the FBI instead of assigning him to me. They were hoping I'd be able to get him to focus on normal cases and forget about the X-Files." 

"Were you able to control him?" MacLeod asked. 

"No. I fell in love with him instead and worked behind the scenes to protect him and his work." Walter frowned. "My support for Fox got me in trouble with the wrong people inside the bureau and government; it more or less sidelined my career." 

"It must have been difficult for the two of you working for the FBI and keeping your relationship a secret." 

"Fox was straight back then. He didn't develop an interest in men until after the aliens altered him. When we worked together he never knew about my feelings for him, and I tried hard to keep it that way." Walter looked toward his bedroom doorway. "After everything we went through in those days, in the end, it was worth the price. He's mine now and I'm never going to allow anyone or anything to harm him again." 

MacLeod sensed that there was more to their story. John had mentioned that both Fox and Walter had been deeply involved in fighting against conspirators inside the government who had been working with the aliens. After Fox had been abducted, John had been assigned to find him and ended up working for this X-Files department. He told MacLeod that Walter had witnessed Fox's abduction and blamed himself for failing to protect him. 

After MacLeod's conversation with John, the Highlander tried to get Fox to talk about his abduction and the aliens, but the young man refused. He told MacLeod that the wounds were still too fresh and he wasn't ready to talk about that period of his life. 

"John mentioned that he and you found Fox's body after he was abducted," MacLeod said. 

"Yes." Walter's eyes became distant. "I even went to his funeral and watched as his coffin was lowered into the ground. It was the worst moment of my life." 

"But he wasn't dead." If MacLeod had heard this story before meeting these men, he would have assumed Fox Mulder was an immortal. 

"No." Walter frowned. "Fox lay inside that fucking coffin, buried beneath the ground for three months, before I realized that he might still be alive and had his body exhumed. If I ever get my hands on the aliens that did that to him, I'll rip them apart! Fox still has the occasional nightmare about that time." 

MacLeod placed a hand on Walter's shoulder. "I'm sorry, that must have been painful for you." 

"His abduction and death were the worst six months of my life." Walter shook his head. "Never again. I'll kill anyone who harms him." 

MacLeod steered their conversation to a less painful topic. "Living out here, on this mountain, must have been a major lifestyle change for both of you." 

"This place has been a lifesaver for us," Walter said as he poured the eggnog from the mixing bowl into a pitcher. "I don't believe Fox could have maintained his sanity if he had remained an FBI agent. He found peace here and our children have given our lives a new focus." Walter grinned. "A few years ago, I never could have imagined that I would become a father at this stage in my life." 

Immortals weren't able to have children, so MacLeod couldn't imagine what it would be like. "I'm glad for you. Some people go their whole life without finding happiness." 

The windowpane shook as the full force of the blizzard finally reached them. MacLeod and Walter went to look out the window -- they couldn't even see the barn or the chicken coop. 

"Remind me to thank Melvin for his tip about tying that rope between the house and the barn," Walter said. 

~x~X~x~ 

The Hummingbird 

Naomi stood anxiously by the back door with Jim, looking out at the storm through the window. Blair had gone to the barn to milk the cows and to add wood to the potbelly stove. 

"He's made it," Jim said, relieved. 

The wind was so loud that only Jim could hear Blair when he yelled that he was inside. Blair would call again when he was ready to head back in about an hour. 

"When Santa come?" Joey asked as he looked up at his dad while holding onto his pant leg. 

Jim smiled and picked his son up. "Santa comes tonight after you are tucked into bed." 

"I sleep with you and Daddy." 

"Yes. You get to sleep in the big bed with us tonight," Jim said, knowing Joey was afraid of the wind. 

Naomi smiled. "Since you've been such a good boy, I bet Santa leaves you lots of presents." 

With Joey's sentinel abilities, everyone had been extra careful when talking about Santa as if he were a real person. Naomi had found out how important it was for her son and the other men to keep the myth of Santa Claus alive for their children in their early years. As Blair had explained to her, he wanted Joey to be able to develop his imagination and keep the innocence of childhood for as long as possible. 

She touched Jim's arm. "Let me know when he's coming back to the house." 

Sonja, Walter, and Mac had everything under control in the kitchen so Naomi wandered into the great room. The twins had taken their first steps a few days ago, and were now walking shakily across the hardwood floor. Fox was sitting on the floor next to the Christmas tree. They'd totter over to him for a kiss and a hug then head over to Wade for another hug, and then to Joe. 

Naomi looked at Joe. The man was so handsome with warm eyes, a well-groomed beard, and salt and pepper hair. Gwen was sitting on John's lap and sucking on a homemade candy cane. Adam and Alex were playing a game of chess. 

A look of discomfort flashed across Fox's face. He stood, retrieved the twins, then headed into the bedroom with them and closed the door. Naomi knew from talking to Blair that her son had developed breasts and started lactating when he was pregnant with Joey, and had breast-fed his son. Blair's breasts had returned to normal after he had weaned his son. So Naomi knew that Fox was currently breast-feeding the twins, and his look of discomfort was due to milk-laden breasts. She wondered what they looked like. 

Naomi sat next to Joe on the sofa. On the mantel over the hearth hung five Christmas stockings with each of the kid's name sewn on them. Liz and Sonja had made the ones for the twins a few weeks ago. The others were from last Christmas. Joe had his guitar leaning against the sofa. She'd once given Blair a guitar that Jimmy Hendrix had autographed for her. Blair was really good at playing it and seeing Joe's guitar had made her son wish he'd taken his guitar on vacation with him and Jim. 

Connor was on the floor playing with his kitten. For such a young boy, he was being very gentle with the kitten. Tiger was sleeping under the Christmas tree while Kronos was prowling around the room and looking for something to attack. He spied Methos and quietly stalked over to his unsuspecting prey then shot up his leg, tiny nails digging into tender flesh before he settled on Methos' lap. 

"Ouch, bad Kronos," Methos said as he snatched the kitten off his lap and held it in front of his face. 

The kitten licked his nose. 

"Be gentle," Connor scolded. 

Methos looked at the boy. "I am being gentle; it's Kronos who's playing rough." 

Alex chuckled and moved a chess piece. "Checkmate." 

Naomi leaned against Joe and smiled. "It feels nice to be with family and friends during the Holidays." 

They stayed relaxing and enjoying each other's company, until Jim announced that Blair was on his way back. Standing by the door, Jim opened it to let Blair into the house. 

Blair rushed inside followed by the cold blowing snow. He was bundled from head to foot. The snow goggles he was wearing fogged over in the warmth of the kitchen. 

Jim took the steel milk container from Blair's gloved hand. 

"Those were the longest two hundred feet that I ever had to walk," Blair said. "You wouldn't believe how tall some of the drifts are." 

"It's my turn to go out to the barn next," Fox said. 

Walter frowned but kept his thoughts to himself as he placed the food on the table. 

"If everyone would like to take a seat," Sonja said. 

They gathered around the table. Fox helped the twins into their highchairs, while John and Jim got the other kids into their booster chairs. 

Walter sliced the beef Wellington and Alex filled the wineglasses with a red wine. 

Once everyone was seated, Joe picked up his wineglass. "I'd like to propose a toast. To new friends and old friends, to good food and good times, and a bright future to one and all. Cheers." 

"Cheers," they said, clicking their glasses together. 

One thing Naomi noticed was that the toddlers didn't whine for any specific toy. No Barbies, no talking Elmo, no Teletubbie, and no Care Bears. Maybe they were still too young. Naomi recalled the times she had been shopping before Christmas and had to listen to children pestering their parents for toys they couldn't live without. Maybe without television and commercials, Christmas had become less commercialized. She hoped it would stay that way for a while. 

These children's parents weren't spoiling them. On the trips off the mountain the guys didn't come back loaded down with toys, other than a few they planned to give their children for Christmas or their birthdays. Those special days would have more meaning as the children grew up. 

"I was thinking," Walter said. "I think we should get two five-hundred gallon underground fuel tanks. It would be safer than storing all of those two gallon gasoline and diesel cans in the tool shed." 

"Underground gas tanks are known to leak," Naomi warned. "You might contaminate the stream and groundwater." 

"The newer tanks they've been producing over the last ten years are less likely to leak," Walter said. "But we can determine the best location to put them, with the least possibility that they would contaminate our groundwater." 

John nodded. "I think it would be worth the risk. Besides, we're only talking small tanks. It does worry me, storing that much fuel above ground." 

"If we ever get those ATVs, we're going to need the gasoline," Fox said. 

"And dirt bikes." Alex set down his wineglass. "We could bury the tanks across the path from our house. That way they'd be easily accessible to the Gunmen, Simon, the Byers, and Wade and Sonja after they move." 

"Now that's a good idea." Jim grinned. "We'll have our own little neighborhood Texaco." 

"How would we get the tanks filled?" Blair asked. 

"We'll work out a deal with the company that fills Sean's tanks," Walter said. 

Naomi wanted to disapprove of their plans but deep down she knew they needed the fuel for the tractor and chainsaws. These new times were making her realize that her past ideals and views were no longer realistic. 

The men started discussing the logistics of getting and maintaining the storage tanks. 

~x~X~x~ 

The Owl 

After dinner they retired to the great room. It was an hour before the children's bedtime. 

Dawson picked up his guitar and started playing and singing White Christmas. 

"I'm dreaming of a white Christmas," 

Fox chuckled. "I think that's already been arranged." 

Dawson smiled at him and continued singing. 

"Just like the ones I used to know  
Where the treetops glisten and children listen to hear sleigh bells in the snow" 

The women and men joined in, except Jim who snuck out of room. 

"I'm dreaming of a white Christmas,  
just like the ones I used to know  
Where the treetops glisten and children listen to hear sleigh bells in the snow 

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas,  
with every Christmas card I write  
May your days be merry and bright,  
and may all your Christmases be white" 

Joey sat on Blair's lap enraptured by the singing. While Gwen stood next to Dawson captivated as she watched him strum the guitar. 

"I'm dreaming of a white Christmas,  
just like the ones I used to know  
May your days be merry and bright,  
and may all your Christmases be white" 

Dawson looked down at her, and knew that someday she'd be able to play as well as him. Maybe he'd be the one to teach her. 

"I'm dreaming of a white Christmas,  
with every Christmas card I write  
May your days be merry and bright,  
and may all your Christmases be white" 

"May your days be merry and bright,  
and may all your Christmases be white" 

Jim returned to the room carrying a guitar case that had a red bow tied around the neck. "Merry Christmas, Chief," he said, handing it to Blair then leaning down to kiss him. 

Blair looked stunned as he opened the case and gasped. Inside was a white Fender stratocaster. "My God, Jim, this is so close in appearance to my old guitar, except without Jimi Hendrix's autograph." 

"It's newer than your old guitar but that was all I could find, wanted to give it to you tonight so you can play along with Joe." 

Gwen deserted Joe, walked over to Blair and touched the guitar. "Mine." 

John stood and picked up his daughter. "Gwendolyn, if you really want a guitar Daddy Alex and I will get you one for your birthday. That guitar is Uncle Blair's. Maybe, if you ask him, he'll teach you how to play it." 

"Since we're opening gifts," Wade said. "I think it's time for you boys to open the gift I made for you." 

"Fox, since this was your home before you took us in, I think you should be the one to open it," John said. 

Fox was holding Chloe on his lap and passed her to Sonja as he stood. Her sister was sitting on Walter's lap while Connor wandered around the room. 

As Fox looked up at the tall gift, he said, "I'm not sure what the carving looks like underneath this tarp, but the size and shape are really impressive." He used a knife to cut the ropes then Wade helped him pull off the tarp. 

Dawson stood along with the others and looked at the log carving in awe. The ten-foot high carving had five wolves and a panther climbing up and around a steep path, on the top was a lone wolf howling up at the sky. Carved in the middle of the log between the weaving bodies of wolves were the words "Moonridge Lodge." 

"It's magnificent," Fox said. 

"Yes, it's really beautiful." Alex ran a hand over the wood. 

Blair smiled. "I know which one is Jim, but we'll have to guess at which wolves we are." 

"Dad, this is probably your finest work of art," Walter said as he held Aviva balanced on his hip. 

Wade beamed as Connor squeezed between them. 

Connor tugged at Walter's arm. "Daddy, put out fire!" 

Walter quickly glanced around afraid the house was on fire. Seeing no fire he breathed a sigh of relief and picked up Connor, balancing him on his other hip. "What fire?" 

Connor pointed to the fireplace. 

"Why do you want that fire out?" 

"Santa get burn." 

"Now I understand." Walter smiled. "You don't have to worry; Santa turns into smoke when he comes down the chimney, so he won't be burned." 

Blair started tuning his guitar. 

"Two more songs then I think the kids need to go to bed so Santa can come," Fox said, taking Chloe back from Sonja. The baby was sucking on her pacifier and she put her head on her Daddy's shoulder as he sat back on the sofa with her. 

Dawson looked over at Blair. "Are you ready?" 

"Yes." Blair started strumming and singing the next song and everyone joined in. 

"Chestnuts roasting on an open fire,   
Jack Frost nipping on your nose,   
Yuletide carols being sung by a choir, And folks dressed up like Eskimos. 

Everybody knows a turkey and some mistletoe, Help to make the season bright.   
Tiny tots with their eyes all aglow,   
Will find it hard to sleep tonight. 

They know that Santa's on his way;   
He's loaded lots of toys and goodies on his sleigh. And every mother's child is going to spy, To see if reindeer really know how to fly. 

And so I'm offering this simple phrase, To kids from one to ninety-two,   
Although its been said many times, many ways, A very Merry Christmas to you!" 

The final song that they played for the children was Silent Night. 

"Okay, bedtime," Fox said after the song was over. 

"I sleep with Connor," Joey said. 

Wade looked at the little boys then said to Walter. "You can put them to bed on the other full-sized bed in our room." 

"That's a good idea," Walter said and turned to his son. "Connor, would you like to sleep with Joey upstairs in Grandma's and Grandpa's room?" 

Connor nodded and walked over to hold Joey's hand. 

Gwen looked at her Dad and said, "I wanna sleep on the big bed with Joey and Connor." 

Dawson watched them with a smile on his face. It had been a long time since he spent Christmas in a home with children. While the men got their children ready for bed, Dawson walked over and looked at the nativity scene. It only had three painted woodcarvings of the baby Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. They were all Wade had time to complete. He planned to carve the rest of the figures by next Christmas. 

Walter came downstairs and stopped in his bedroom doorway. "Fox, you have your hands full with the twins, why don't I go out to the barn and stoke the fire?" 

Dawson heard Fox's voice from inside the room. 

"No, I'll do it. I've already changed their diapers; I just have to put their pajamas on then I'll head out to put more logs in the potbelly stove." 

"You know that you really have to bundle up," Walter said. "Any exposed flesh could get severe frostbite before you reach the barn." 

"Walter, I've been to the Antarctic ... I know how dangerous this weather is," Fox said. "After I rescued Scully from that alien spaceship, I had to carry her back to the Cat so I could radio for help. We both ended up with mild cases of frostbite." 

That got Dawson's attention as well as Mac's who looked toward the bedroom doorway -- the way Fox casually mentioned that he had rescued someone from a spaceship, making it sound like the most normal thing in the world. Dawson wanted to learn more about the aliens; so far Fox hadn't been willing to say too much. The man was an enigma. Completely content raising his children without showing too much interest in anything else then surprising Dawson by knowing all about the Watchers and Immortals. Old eyes -- Dawson had seen them on Immortals who had been around for centuries -- Fox Mulder had the same old eyes. 

~x~X~x~ 

The Fox 

Walter's so cute, Mulder thought as his husband adjusted the scarf until no skin showed on Mulder's face. The heavy wool was stifling as he breathed into the material but at least his amused expression was hidden from Walter who looked at him sternly. 

"I want you to call to Jim as soon as you're in the barn, then again when you're ready to head back," Walter said. "And be sure to cover every inch of skin." 

"I love you when you worry about me." 

"Then you must love me a lot," Walter said gruffly. 

"With my heart and soul." Mulder's eyes sparkled behind the goggles as he reached for the doorknob. "Keep the porch light on for me." 

"Just get your butt back here in twenty minutes or I'm coming after you." 

Mulder opened the back door and stepped outside, he was almost knocked off his feet by the force of the wind. Walter held the door against the wind and waited until Mulder had his hand on the rope before he pushed the door closed. Okay it was cold and a bit windy Mulder decided, holding onto the rope and struggling to maintain his footing as he slowly moved across the farmyard to the barn. He was effectively blind. Between the night and the snow he couldn't see an inch in front of his face even with his wolf vision. As he neared the barn the snowdrifts got deeper until Mulder was up to his ass in snow. 

They were going to have a hell of a mess to clean up after the storm passed. He finally reached the door. It only took four minutes but it felt a lot longer. After Mulder entered the barn he called, "Jim, I made it." 

A bare light bulb hung in the middle of the barn, casting a pale light inside the large expanse. Other than the potbelly stove, it was the only light and it elongated the dark shadows into the stalls and corners -- not quite reaching into their inky depths. 

Mulder loosened the scarf so he was no longer breathing through wool. He checked on the horses and cows before heading over to the stove. He opened the iron door and put in several logs on top of the hot embers. When Mulder shut the door and stood he felt like he was being watched. 

"Who's there?" he asked, glancing around the barn. "Show yourself." 

Out of a dark corner, a white wolf stepped cautiously into the dim light. It whimpered and looked up at Mulder. 

"Hey, how did you get in here?" Mulder asked. The wolf wasn't as large as Mulder or the other men were when they morphed into wolves. 

The wolf barked and Mulder suddenly found himself visually communicating with the creature. 

An image of three men dressed in parkas and mukluks walking beside the wolf, flashed into Mulder's mind. The men had on backpacks and struggled through the deep snow. Then the wolf took off after a rabbit. One of the humans shouted. "Diefenbaker!" 

Suddenly while Diefenbaker was chasing the rabbit, the blizzard hit. The wolf whimpered, and struggled through the snow and blinding wind. He stumbled upon the barn and opened the door with his mouth then closed it once he was inside. 

Mulder kneeled to be at eye level with the animal. "Your name is Diefenbaker and you were separated from your humans by the storm?" 

The wolf barked and licked Mulder's face. 

"Okay, after the storm is over I'll help you find them." Mulder stood and looked at the wolf as he spoke. "I want to bring you back to the house. It's, two hundred feet. Do you think you can make it?" He retied the scarf around his head. 

The wolf barked and walked over to the door. 

An image of a bowl of dog food flashed into Mulder's mind. The poor thing was hungry. 

"We have food, if you like venison." 

Mulder opened the barn door and called. "Jim, I'm coming back with a new friend." 

The wolf stayed right beside Mulder as they crossed the snow-covered yard. It seemed the wind had died down a little; when they were within twenty feet of the house Mulder could see the light coming from the windows. 

Walter opened the door when they were three feet away and Diefenbaker ran inside. Mulder let go of the rope and entered the house. 

Everyone except the children and Sonja and Wade were in the kitchen. The elder Skinners had turned in for the evening. The men and Naomi looked at the wolf as he shook the snow off his thick furry coat, splattering their legs with water. Tiger walked up to him and they touched noses. 

Walter helped Mulder off with his winter gear. 

"His name is Diefenbaker," Mulder told them. "He's been separated from the men he was traveling with by the blizzard." 

"How did you learn all that?" John asked. 

"Diefenbaker told me. We were able to communication telepathically with images," Mulder said. "I think it has to do with me being a werewolf." 

Blair kneeled and petted the wolf. "Then we might be able to communicate with him, too." 

Walter squatted to unlace his lover's knee-high winter boots. "If he got separated from these men during the blizzard, they couldn't have been too far from our home. I hope they found a cave or a hollow out of the wind to ride out the storm. Otherwise we might be finding their bodies come spring." 

Jim's expression became distant. He walked over to the door, opened it, and listened intently. Snow and cold air blew inside before he finally shut it. "They're in the Japanese teahouse." 

"Can you hear if any of them are injured?" John asked. 

"I'm not sure." Jim shook his head. "I can barely hear them over the storm. They sounded tired and one of them was worrying about Diefenbaker." 

"We can't reach them until the storm dies down," Mac said. "At least there's plenty of firewood and tea to hold them over until tomorrow morning." 

"I bet Diefenbaker is hungry," Joe said. 

The wolf looked at Joe and barked in agreement. 

Naomi smiled. "I'll chop some venison up for him." 

Mulder watch the wolf follow Naomi over to the refrigerator. Since Diefenbaker was being taken care of, Mulder turned to Walter. "Do you think your parents would mind if I looked in on Connor?" 

"No. I took a photograph of the kids sharing the bed for their scrapbooks." 

"It's ten o'clock," Blair said. "Let's get the presents under the tree then turn in for the night." 

Jim leered at him. "This is going to be the first night in over a year that we'll have the bedroom to ourselves." 

Alex put his arms around John. "C'mon, John boy, let's play Santa then we can play something a little less innocent in our bedroom." 

As Mulder climbed the spiral staircase, he wondered if Sonja and Wade would be willing to share the room with the toddlers until their home was built. The bedroom door was partially open, so he peeked inside. Wade and Sonja were sleeping on the bed nearest the door, while the kids were in the other bed. Joey was in the middle with Connor sleeping nearest the other bed and Gwen on the side nearest the window. Jam was sleeping on the pillow by Connor's head. 

Mulder had been concerned that they might fall out of bed, but his fears were arrested by how close they snuggled together in the center of the bed. He turned and headed downstairs. They were placing the presents under the tree, including the gifts that Paul and Mike had sent. Mulder never would have believed he'd someday be part of such a loving extended family. Nor would he have believed that he'd be married to Skinner and madly in love with the man. Sometimes life really does make lemonade out of lemons. 

~x~X~x~ 

The Dragonfly 

The wind buffeted the walls and windows, rattling the panes of glass as Vecchio lay on top of a sleeping bag next to Stanley Kowalski's slumbering body. They had been damned lucky to find this shelter after the blizzard had struck so suddenly. And even luckier that there was a large stack of firewood next to a potbelly stove, along with a credenza that was filled with teacups and several blends of herbal tea. 

The place was clean, free of dust, and looked newly-built; the former Chicago detective deduced that there had to be people living nearby. 

On the other side of Stan, Benny was awake and staring up at the ceiling. 

"I'm sure Diefenbaker's all right," Vecchio said as he touched the small gold cross he wore around his neck and said a silent prayer -- it couldn't hurt. 

Vecchio missed his family. They had been killed when the aliens destroyed Chicago. He'd been up in Canada at the time on a smuggling case with Benny and Stan. They had hurried back, but couldn't get near the city -- the heat from the fires was too intense. The men then spent the next two years searching refugee camps on the off chance some of their friends and possibly Vecchio's mother and siblings had made it out alive. 

After no luck, tired and defeated, they were now trying to find somewhere to settle down. It was the reason they were in this part of the country. Benny had wanted to go back to his home in the northern territories of Canada, but neither Vecchio nor Stan wanted to make home in such a desolate, cold location. So they compromised. Winter in the Blue Ridge Mountains would give Benny the sense of being home, plus it wasn't nearly as isolated or cold as the Yukon, which made Vecchio and Stan happy. 

Not that living off the land was something that appealed to Vecchio. He was a city boy through-and-through, he loved urban life. But if giving up that life made Benny happy, Vecchio would do it in a heartbeat -- and he did. So now there they were, stuck inside a small one-room cabin on Christmas Eve while a blizzard raged outside. 

Vecchio glanced over Stan's body. "Hey, Benny, maybe we should head down to Georgia." 

"No." Benny smiled. "This area is starting to feel like home." 

"It would," Vecchio sighed. 

"Remember the piece of land we were looking at before the blizzard hit?" 

"There wasn't much to look at," the former detective grumbled. "The land was buried under four feet of frigging snow." 

"I think we should settle there and build a cabin." 

The land was three miles north of where they were currently. "I don't know, Benny, maybe we should move nearer the valley." 

"Guys," Stan said as he rolled over onto his back. "Can we discuss this in the spring, after we can get a better look at the land?" 

"Hey, sure ... no prob." Vecchio shrugged. "Besides we need to make sure no one owns it." 

Benny got up and added more wood to the potbelly stove. The small cabin was comfortably toasty. Vecchio turned on his side and snuggled closer to Stan as Benny joined them. 

Soon they were asleep. 

~x~X~x~ 

The Bear 

Christmas 

With Connor sleeping upstairs and the privacy screen in front of the twin's cribs. The guys were finally able to put their bed to the use it was meant for and that wasn't sleeping. A slow sated smile spread across Skinner's face as he pulled out of his lover then buried his nose in the crook of Fox's neck, breathing in his masculine scent. God Skinner loved this man. 

Fox wrapped his arms around Skinner's body in a comforting embrace and pressed sweet kisses on the side of his bald head. This was what Skinner had missed so desperately last year when his lover was missing -- the tender caresses, the sweet kisses, and the unbridled passion of the man. 

An hour ago Skinner had returned from stoking the stove in the barn and found Fox waiting by the back door with a disapproving frown. He'd scolded Skinner for not enlisting assistance before going out to the barn. Skinner found the sight of his lover's concerned face too much to resist -- so he didn't. 

The storm had died down considerably over the past six hours. By sunrise they should be able to reach the men in the Japanese teahouse. 

"If we get up now, we can take a shower before the children and your parents get out of bed," Fox said. 

"It's only four o'clock in the morning." 

"Yes, and your parents get up at five sharp." 

Skinner smiled. "I can't sleep anyway, so we might as well get up." He was excited about today. They had so much to do and he wanted to get pictures of the children's faces when they saw the gifts under the Christmas tree. These first memories would stay with them forever. 

"With our guests in the teahouse, we're going to have to roast the leg of lamb in addition to the goose after all," Fox said. "Where are we going to put them?" 

"We have a bunk in the bedroom that isn't being used so I guess we can put one of them in there and the other two can use the pull out sofa in the great room." 

"They're lovers you know," Fox said as climbed out of bed. 

"All three of them?" 

"Yes." 

"So are Adam and Mac." Skinner shrugged as he gathered his clothes. "Like them, these other men are just going to have to find places away from the house to have sex." 

"We should charge rent on the teahouse," Fox quipped, "We'd make enough to retire to Florida." 

Walter shook his head and smiled. "I want potato pancakes for breakfast." 

"Your wish is my command." Fox bowed as they walked into the bathroom and closed the door. 

Fox had cooking duty that day. He and Sonja were getting along better. Skinner thought his mom had developed a grudging respect for her son-in-law's cooking abilities. The family was going to eat well today. 

They should have plenty of food for these additional men and their wolf. Skinner and the other men always stocked a back-up supply of food for emergencies. 

"This is getting old," Fox sighed as he stared down at his swollen chest. "I need to feed the twins." 

Skinner looked lustfully at his lover's milk-laden breasts. "Why don't we use the breast pump so I can feed our daughters while you prepare breakfast?" 

"Okay. That would make this morning much easier." 

Sharing showers had become routine for all of the men. With only two bathrooms, it cut down on bathroom time. 

After their shower they retreated to the bedroom, used the breast pump, then Skinner woke their daughters. He changed their diapers then sat on the loveseat and fed them the bottles of milk while Fox headed into the kitchen to make the batter for potato pancakes. He was making enough for the men stranded in the teahouse. 

The wolf sauntered into the bedroom and over to the loveseat. He looked at the baby girls Skinner was feeding. 

Skinner watched the wolf closely for any aggressive movements. A telepathic image of a wolf protecting his young passed between them. Diefenbaker rested his chin on the sofa arm and continued to watch the babies suckle on the bottles. 

In the other room Skinner heard John's and Jim's voices. Apparently, the other men couldn't sleep, either. 

Skinner looked down at the sweet faces of his daughters as they fed. They were close to the age Connor was when he said his first word. This Christmas the twins wouldn't experience much excitement -- that should happen next year. 

While Skinner was burping the twins he heard his father's voice. 

"I wonder if Santa Claus was able to make it to our house in the blizzard?" Wade said very loudly to give the men plenty of warning that the toddlers were out of bed and about to come out of the bedroom. 

Skinner had left the camera with Fox in case he was preoccupied with the twins when Connor woke up. 

Jim and John both had digital cameras, so between the three of them they'd have plenty of photographs to use for the children's scrapbooks and to send to John's father. 

At Connor's excited shout, "Santa came!" Skinner stood and carried Aviva and Chloe out of the bedroom and placed them in the playpen near the tree. 

Dressed in robes, his mother and father walked down the spiral staircase with the toddlers. John, Jim, and Fox were taking pictures of them as Blair and Alex came out of their bedrooms and joined everyone in the great room. They all sat and watched the kids open their presents. 

The children's favorite gifts were the tricycles. Skinner handed out the final gifts from Paul and Mike. 

"These aren't from Santa," Skinner said. "These are from your Grandpa Paul and Uncle Mike." 

The large boxes each contained musical instruments. As if by some strange act of fate Gwen's contained a guitar. Joey received a trumpet, and Connor a keyboard. Skinner was grateful Paul hadn't sent a drum set. To Skinner's further surprise Fox set the keyboard up on its stand and played it tentatively at first -- his long fingers floating over the keys like water down a stream. 

At Skinner's look of befuddlement Fox smiled and said, "My mother insisted I take piano lessons when I was four years old. By the time I was seven, I was as good as my piano teacher, which isn't saying much. As I got older my interest changed to sports and my dad convinced mom to allow me to join the basketball team instead of band." 

"You still know how to play?" Skinner said. 

"It's been a while and I'm pretty rusty, but I have a photographic memory. I never forget anything unless it's intentionally deleted by outside forces." 

"Doggy!" Joey shouted as Diefenbaker wandered into the great room. 

"Doggy!" Connor hurried over to pet it. 

"Do doggy have name?" Gwen asked, petting the wolf. 

"His name is Diefenbaker," John said. 

While the children played with Diefenbaker under the watchful eye of Wade, the other men pulled on their parkas. The winds had died down considerably. After they took care of the animals, they were going to head over to the Japanese teahouse and invite their erstwhile guests back to the house. 

Once outside, Skinner glanced around and sighed. Their tractor was buried under an eight-foot snowdrift. While there were huge drifts in some areas, others only had a couple of inches of snow left on the ground. The shoveling could wait until tomorrow. Today was Christmas and other than tending to the animals, everyone was going to take the day off. 

While Alex and Jim milked the cows, and Blair collected eggs, Skinner and John decided to walk over to the teahouse. The sun had risen and the temperature had climbed to twenty-five degrees. The trees covered in a bright white snow sparkled brilliantly in the sunlight. It looked like a winter wonderland. 

"It's beautiful," John said, echoing Skinner's thoughts. 

"This will be one Christmas for the record books." 

They trudged through a couple of snowdrifts but found the moon bridge free of snow. The stream had frozen over during the blizzard, but was now beginning to flow again underneath the thin layer of ice. 

They stood up to their knees in snow as they knocked on the door to the teahouse. 

Skinner heard voices inside and footsteps hurrying to the door, which was flung open. Two good-looking men with blue eyes stood in the doorway. Another man with a prominent nose, receding hairline, and hazel eyes stood behind them. 

"Good morning," Skinner said. "We thought we'd invite you over to the house for breakfast." 

"How did you know we were here?" the shorter of the two blue-eyed men asked. 

"Diefenbaker." 

The hazel-eyed man said, "Whoa, he's a deaf wolf and doesn't have a vocabulary over a few barks, whimpers, and whines." 

"Then how did we know his name?" John asked. 

One of the men held out his hand. "I'm Benton Fraser and these are my associates, Stanley Kowalski and Ray Vecchio. And we'd love to join you for breakfast. Thank you for inviting us." 

Skinner shook their hands. For some reason the name Ray Vecchio sounded familiar. "I'm Walter Skinner and this is John Doggett. If you want to get your coats and backpacks we can head out." 

"How far is your house?" Stan asked. 

"About a quarter mile," John said. 

"That close?" Ray pulled on his mukluks. 

The men hurriedly dressed in their winter gear and grabbed their backpacks. 

"Do you guys live up here by yourselves?" Stan asked as they stepped out of the teahouse and closed the door. 

"No," John said. "We share our home with four other men and our children. We currently have several guests staying with us through winter." 

"What about neighbors?" Fraser asked. 

"Our neighbors are pretty spread out," Skinner said as he tried to figure out where he'd heard the name Ray Vecchio. "The nearest is three miles from us." 

Ray whistled when they came in sight of the house. "Nice place you have here." 

Skinner smiled. "Welcome to Moonridge Lodge." 

"This place is big," Stan said. 

Jim came out of the barn carrying the steel milk container with Alex following him. They stopped and Skinner made introductions as Blair came out of the chicken coop with a basket full of eggs. There looked to be at least three-dozen. 

"Is there a chance we could have eggs for breakfast?" Ray asked, looking at the eggs as his stomach growled. 

"We're having potato pancakes," Skinner said. "But I'm sure Fox would be happy to whip up an omelet for you." 

"We'd be very much obliged," Fraser said quickly. "We haven't eaten in two days. An omelet sounds good. Plenty of protein." 

They walked into the house, and Skinner showed them where to hang their coats and put their boots. They stacked their backpacks against the wall. 

Diefenbaker came running over barking excitedly. 

Fraser hugged him. "Dief, you would find a place to ride out the blizzard with people and food." 

"Ray Vecchio!" Sonja said then turned to face the great room. "Hey, Wade, look who's here." 

"Mrs. Skinner?" Ray looked into the great room. "Mr. Skinner?" 

"Mom, you know this man?" Skinner asked then suddenly recalled where he had seen this man before -- only he wasn't a man at the time. 

"Walter, you remember Raymondo Vecchio," Sonja said. "You used to baby sit him and his siblings." 

"Now it's coming back to me," Skinner said. "It was over thirty-five years ago." Once he joined the Marines then became an FBI agent, Skinner only came home for Christmas. 

"Hey, I remember you," Ray said, "I used to have a bad case of hero worship. I should have recognized you, but you did have a full head of curly black hair back then." 

"I take it you were neighbors," Fox said. 

"Yes, dear," Sonja said. "We lived down the block from the Vecchios for over fifty years." 

Stan grinned. "I bet you have some interesting stories about Ray growing up." 

"Dozens," Wade said. 

"Is that coffee I smell?" Ray asked, changing the subject. 

Sonja ushered them over to the counter. "Why don't you boys have a seat at the counter and Fox and I will fix your breakfast." 

"They want omelets," Skinner said before introducing them to the other people in the room. 

"Did your family make it through the attack?" Wade asked. 

"No ... I don't think so..." Ray sighed. "I was up in Canada on a smuggling case when the aliens struck. We hurried back, but there was nothing left. We then spent the last two years searching refugee camps for them. Now with the refugee camps all disbanded, we have nowhere else to look." 

"I'm so sorry for your loss," Sonja said. "Your mother and I were such good friends." 

Joe leaned against the counter. "You were a cop?" 

"Chicago's finest," Ray said. "Stan and I were both detectives. Benny here is a Canadian Mountie." 

Joe smiled. "You'll feel right at home here." 

"What do you mean?" 

"Jim and Blair were detectives with Cascade PD. Their former Captain has a home three miles southwest of here. Walter, Fox, and John are former FBI agents. And Alex was CIA." 

"And what did you do for a living?" Stan asked. 

"I owned a bar and am a blues musician," Joe said. 

Adam and Mac strolled out of their bedroom. They both had that just-fucked look about them. Skinner wondered if they went at it after Joe had gotten up. It didn't matter to Skinner what they did in the privacy of their own bedroom. 

"I see you rescued the men stranded at the teahouse," Adam said as he and Mac joined them at the counter. 

Skinner made the introductions then he glanced around. "Where's Naomi?" 

"She's taking a whirlpool bath," Joe said. 

Ray's eyes lit up. "You have a whirlpool bathtub?" 

"We have only two bathrooms," Skinner said. "The upstairs bathroom has a whirlpool tub and a separate shower, downstairs has a deep, claw-foot tub." 

"If it wouldn't be too much of an imposition, I wonder if I could take a bath after breakfast," Ray said. "It's been over a month since any of us have had a hot bath or shower." 

"It's no imposition," Fox said, turning a diced ham, mushroom, and cheese omelet out onto a plate and setting it in front of Ray, adding a plate with two slices of toast next to it. "Since you'll be staying with us until it's safe for you to move on," Fox laughed, "I think we'd all pretty much prefer you bathe regularly." 

Ray's face lit up in a grin as he picked up the fork. "Yes indeedy, this is going to be a very merry Christmas." 

~x~X~x~ 

The Otter 

Byers changed his daughter's diaper and powdered her bottom. She was so tiny. His wife was in the kitchen preparing their Christmas dinner. The little orange kitten they had gotten from Mulder was chasing its tail around on the bedroom floor. Normally Byers would have missed not celebrating Christmas with his friends, but this year he was perfectly content celebrating Christmas alone with his wife and daughter. 

Laura had a duck roasting in the oven. While Byers wasn't much of a hunter, he had learned, under Laura's guidance, how to clean fowl and other small game. Walter, John, Mac, and Adam had dropped off several freshly killed ducks, a couple of weeks ago. After Byers had cleaned the birds, he'd put them in the freezer. 

Ducks were high in fat and made the perfect food during the cold winter. Mulder had been giving Byers shooting lessons. Someday he hoped to become good enough to join the other men when they went hunting. Byers wanted to be the one putting the food on the table for his family. 

He gently lifted his daughter off the changing table and cradled her against his chest as he carried her into the parlor and placed her in the bassinet. They had a small six-foot tall Christmas tree set up in front of the window. Expensive hand-blown glass ornaments decorated the tree. They had been part of Laura's inheritance from her grandmother. 

"John, if you have a moment can you mash the potatoes?" Laura called. 

"Yes, dear." 

"How's Caroline?" Laura asked as John stepped into the kitchen. 

"She's sleeping." Byers looked at his wife. Laura had given birth only six days ago. "How are you feeling?" 

"I'm fine." She looked at him and smiled. "A few years ago I spent Christmas alone and at the time I thought I'd never find love or happiness -- that I'd die alone and unloved on this mountain. Having you in my life has made me deeply happy." 

Byers pulled her into his arm and tenderly kissed her. "I love you." 

~x~X~x~ 

The Lion 

Simon sat with Jin on the sofa and watched Wren play with the wooden dollhouse that Simon and Daryl had made for her. Wade Skinner had given them a hand at carving the wooden family. Their tuxedo kitten played with Wren. Simon and Jin sipped eggnog and listened to Christmas music on the CD player. 

It was a peaceful, relaxing afternoon. A fire blazed in the hearth, their Christmas tree was decorated in front of the bay window and Simon could see the beautiful winter landscape through the glass. Last night he had proposed marriage to Jin, and she had accepted. 

Daryl came in from outside. "I wish I had a sled." 

"Next winter we'll be sure to get you one." 

He pulled off his winter coat and boots. "When's dinner?" 

"It should be ready in an hour," Jin said. "Simon, do you want to give me a hand in the kitchen?" 

"I'd love to give you a hand." 

They had a goose roasting in the oven alongside a casserole of corn pudding. They just needed to make the potatoes and biscuits. 

Simon looked out the kitchen window at the empty white landscape -- next Christmas he'd be able to see their new barn and chicken coop. He took a deep breath. "Sure smells good, Jin." 

Jin had the oven door open and was basting the goose. "Have you ever thought about having another child?" 

"I never thought about getting married again until I met you," Simon said. 

"I think I'm pregnant," Jin said. 

Simon was speechless for several seconds. "How pregnant?" 

"I missed my last two periods." Jin looked door at the floor. "I'm sorry, Simon. I never intended to get pregnant." 

"Don't be." Simon walked over to her and pulled her into his arms. "I'm thrilled." 

"Are you really?" 

"Yes really." Simon grinned. "I couldn't have asked for a better Christmas present." 

Jin returned his embrace. 

~x~X~x~ 

The Stork 

Langly poured gravy over the pile of mashed potatoes on his plate. He and Jimmy had just gotten in from shoveling snow. Frohike had shooed them out of the kitchen to get them out from under his feet while he cooked their Christmas dinner. Liz set the table and helped him. 

Frohike passed the platter of ham to Jimmy. "It might take a month or two for the snow to melt enough for us to collect the digital cameras," he said. "So the January edition of the Magic Mountain will have to be delayed." 

"I hope the guys have enough diesel fuel to plow the paths between our homes," Langly said. 

"They were getting pretty low," Liz commented. "This winter has been snowier than normal. And this last storm hasn't helped any." 

Frohike smiled at her. "If worse came to worse, we can always ride Simon's donkeys to Moonridge Lodge and back." 

"You know I like getting my exercise by walking or biking between our homes," Liz said. 

"Shoveling snow is great exercise," Langly said as he gave her a challenging look. 

"Richard, I have every intention of helping you and Jimmy shovel tomorrow," Liz said. "It's going to require all of us to clear the snow." 

Langly hated it when Liz called him Richard, and she knew it. While he hadn't been too happy when Frohike first started dating her, Langly had developed a grudging respect for Liz. It all came down to the way she treated Frohike. The adoring way she'd look at him whenever he was in the room made Langly realize that Liz really loved Frohike and wasn't using him. So the blond gunman bit his lip and kept his sarcastic comeback to himself. 

Frohike cleared his throat to get their attention. "Mulder radioed while you were out shoveling. The guys have taken in three men who were caught in the blizzard." 

"Did he say who these men are?" Langly asked suspiciously. No one in their right mind would be in these mountains at this time of the year. 

"Two former Chicago police detectives and a Canadian Mountie," Frohike said as he smeared mustard on the slice of ham on his plate. 

"A real Mountie ... too cool," Jimmy said. 

"What were they doing in the area?" Langly asked. 

"Mulder said they had been looking for some land to settle down on," Frohike said. 

"So...?" Langly gave Frohike an exasperated look. "Mulder isn't thinking about giving them any land ... is he?" 

"He didn't say. We only had time to talk for a few minutes." Frohike met Langly's eyes. "Look, Langly, the guys are good judges of character. They aren't about to let anyone live on our section of mountain they don't approve of. These men would have to be okayed not only by Mulder, but Walter, John, Alex, Jim, and Blair." 

"Don't we get a say?" Langly griped. 

"No." 

Jimmy looked between them. "I think it will be cool if they settled here. We'll have more friends in the area." 

Langly glared at him. "You haven't even met them, Jimmy, how'd you know you'd even like them?" he grumbled, pushing the baby carrots around his plate. "For crap's sake, they're former Chicago cops ... I got maced by a Chicago cop once!" 

Liz sighed. "Langly, not all Chicago cops are bad. Just like not all the men and women in the military are bad. Every profession has a few jerks." 

Frohike smiled at her. "I'll save my judgment until I've met them." 

Langly rolled his eyes -- Frohike always took Liz's side. Adjusting to life on the mountain had been the hardest for Langly. The first year before they got electricity had been pure hell. Having to chop wood, shovel shit, milk the goats, Langly could have done without. The only thing he actually enjoyed was growing vegetables. He discovered he actually had a green thumb. At least he had the publication room to hang out in, if only they could get their computers online. It wasn't much fun being a hacker with nothing to hack. 

Now just when he was becoming comfortable with life on the mountain, there went the neighborhood with more cops were moving here. 

~x~X~x~ 

The Badger 

After taking a hot shower, Kowalski dried himself with a towel while Ray soaked in the whirlpool bathtub. Fraser was downstairs doing their laundry. Kowalski wrapped the towel around his hips then looked at his image in the mirror over the bathroom sink. Rubbing the four-day stubble on his face, Kowalski pulled a straight edge razor and gel out of his kit. It had taken him a while to get used to using a straight edge. 

"This is the life," Ray sighed as he took a sip from a mug of coffee. "I could tolerate country-living if we had a set up like this." 

Kowalski chuckled. "Me, too." 

"Walter, Fox, and John are pretty nice for feds," Ray said. 

"Ex-feds." Kowalski ran the blade over his left cheek. "So Walter really babysat you and your sisters and brother?" 

"Only for one summer, mom needed the extra help. I was seven years old at the time, Walter would have been about fifteen." 

"He sure doesn't look eight years older than you." 

There was a knock on the bathroom door and Fraser stepped into the room holding their freshly laundered clothes. Along with his red Mountie uniform, which he hadn't worn for over two years. Kowalski mused that Fraser must want to look his best for the Christmas dinner they were having with this family today. 

"Here you are, gentlemen." Fraser set the clothes on the counter. "I'm going to take a shower before I put on my uniform." 

Ray climbed out of the bathtub. "Thanks, Benny." 

Fraser had washed their best clothes -- or more to the point the jeans and shirts with the least holes and mends. 

"While I was doing the laundry, I talked to Walter about that land we were looking at," Fraser said as he stripped. "It belongs to them, but it's in a section of forest that they don't have any plans for, so he is going to discuss it with the other men about letting us build our home there." 

"What's wrong with the land?" Ray asked. 

"Nothing's wrong with it," Fraser said as he stepped into the shower and raised his voice to be heard over the water. "They have thousands of acres of forest land. The land we're looking at just isn't convenient for their use." 

"Why is that?" 

"The six acres of flat land is full of rocks and boulders and would take too much work to turn it into productive farmland. They have other areas that they plan to develop into additional farmland." Fraser ran the bar of soap through his hair. 

"Won't it be too much work for us?" Kowalski asked as he dressed. 

"No ... it will be backbreaking work, but we're clearing it for our home." After allowing the water to wash the soap out of his hair, Fraser continued. "We'll clear two acres of land this summer and build our log home. Next year we'll clear another couple of acres. The stream running through the land makes it an ideal location." 

Ray set the razor down and picked up a towel. "Okay, but we have one problem." 

"What's that, Ray?" Fraser asked, grabbing a towel and stepping out of the shower. 

"Other than building that cabin up in Canada to replace your Pop's that burned down, none of us know how to build a log home. At least not anywhere near the quality that's in this place." 

Fraser gave them a small smile. "We'll learn while we're helping to build Mr. and Mrs. Skinner's log home." 

Ray groaned. 

Kowalski looked into Ray's hazel eyes and said slowly, "If we help build the Skinner's home that means we'll have to stay here until it's done." After traveling nonstop for over two years, Kowalski just wanted to put his feet up for a while. 

"Ooh, yeah, good thinking," Ray said. 

After Fraser dressed, the men cleaned the puddles off the bathroom floor and carried the wet towels down to the laundry room. 

The long dining room table was set. There was enough seating for all of the adults and children. 

Three little kids were riding tricycles in the great room, screaming and ringing the bikes' bells while Diefenbaker followed. Several men sat at the counter talking while others were doing the same in the great room. Walter and Wade were sitting on the sofa holding two baby girls. 

Kowalski felt slightly overwhelmed. Ray on the other hand was grinning ear from ear, lapping up the mayhem like a fine wine. Fraser quietly observed it all with a smile on his lips. 

Naomi came hurrying over. "Would you like to join us in the great room? We're serving eggnog with brandy or hot spiced wine, your choice." 

"I don't drink alcohol, so may I have an eggnog without brandy?" Fraser said. 

"Of course you may." 

"I'll try the spiced wine," Ray said as they followed her into the great room. 

"Me, too," Kowalski said, dodging a little boy who came wheeling around the sofa. 

John scooped him off the tricycle. "Okay, kids enough. No more riding your tricycles in the house." 

"Whose kids are they?" Kowalski asked. 

"This one belongs to Walter and Fox," John said, setting Connor back on his feet. 

Kowalski looked from Walter to Fox. "Ah -- but they're both men." 

"Do you have a problem with it?" John said. 

"No, it just came as a surprise," Kowalski said. 

A little girl came running over to John. He smiled and picked her up. "And this is, Gwen, she's mine and Alex's." 

"And the other little boy and baby girls?" Ray asked as Naomi handed him and Kowalski mugs of spiced wine. 

"Joey is mine and Jim's son," Blair said then pointed to each of the twins as he said their names. "And the twins, Chloe and Aviva, are Fox's and Walter's." 

"Oh I get it, you adopted them," Kowalski said. Although he was slightly disturbed by how closely the children resembled their adoptive parents. 

Naomi smiled at him. "That's okay ... it takes a bit to get used to." 

"May I ask?" Fraser's voice was barely above a whisper. "Are you saying that all the men in this house are in homosexual relationships?" 

"Not all. Joe and Wade are straight," Naomi said with a smile as she handed Fraser an eggnog. 

"Thank you, Ma'am." 

"It looks like we've come to the right place." Ray snickered as he took a seat on a leather recliner by the fireplace. Then he started chatting with Walter and Wade about the old neighborhood. 

Kowalski had to smile at the stunned expression on Fraser's face. Their lover wasn't usually taken by surprise, unless it had to do with sex. Even after two years, Kowalski and Ray could still take Fraser by surprise in that area. Kowalski remembered when he and Ray, first made love -- it was a force of nature. Their affair started months before the alien attack and their fateful case up in Canada. It, started shortly after Ray returned from his secret assignment in Las Vegas. What began as a shouting match at the police station had ended back at Kowalski's apartment between the sheets. 

Both of them were in love with Fraser, but neither wanted to chance their friendship with him to pursue a sexual relationship. It wasn't until months after the alien attack that Kowalski and Ray had finally brought the Mountie into their bed as a lover. Talk about sweet. It didn't hurt that Fraser was bisexual. 

Speaking of sleeping arrangements, Kowalski turned to Naomi and asked, "Since we'll be staying here for a while, where can we put our stuff?" 

"You'll be sharing a bedroom with Mac and Adam," Naomi said, "There are two empty bunks in the room, so we'll bring in a cot." 

Blair looked at her. "Mom, aren't you forgetting Joe?" 

"No, sweetie, Joe's been sharing my bed for the past week." 

Kowalski observed that Blair didn't appear upset at finding out his mother was sharing a bed with Joe. It was their business. Kowalski didn't care where he slept as long as it was dry, warm, and he had an actual mattress to sleep on. 

Blair turned to Kowalski. "Let me give you a hand lugging your backpacks into the bedroom." 

"Thanks." Kowalski followed him over to the back door. 

~x~X~x~ 

The Beaver 

"Yo, Benny, sit down and put your feet up," Ray said from the recliner. 

Fraser took a seat on the recliner next to Ray's and smiled at Walter and Wade. "This really is a nice place you have here," he said to Walter. "It looks like you added this room on recently." 

"The summer before last," Walter said as he set Chloe on the floor. The baby was shaky on her feet as she tottered over to Ray. "We spent last year building a log home for a friend and adding an addition onto another friend's place." 

Ray leaned forward and picked her up. "Benny was telling Stan and me that you're going to be building your mom and dad a log home starting this spring." 

"Yes," Walter said. "He's offered to help." 

"Stan and I are also looking forward to helping, too," Ray said. "We want to learn all we can for when we finally get around to building our own place." 

"We'd appreciate your help." Walter looked Ray in the eyes then turned his focus on Fraser. "I talked to my partner and the other men, and they have agreed to allow you to have that plot of land. We'll even give you a hand after we get my parent's home built, and you're welcome to stay here until your place is livable." 

"Thanks, Walter," Fraser said. He didn't expect the men to make up their minds so quickly. 

Wade chuckled. "We better radio Sean and have him search for another woodstove." 

"We expect you guys to give us a hand with the chores while living here," Walter said. 

"No prob," Ray said. 

"And that starts with shoveling snow tomorrow." Walter smiled. 

Fraser smiled. "We'd be more than willing to help." 

Fox walked into the room and picked up Connor who was petting Diefenbaker. "If you'd like to take a seat at the table, dinner is ready." 

Stan and Blair stepped out of the bedroom as Fox made the announcement. 

Fraser stood and walked toward the table. A bowl of spicy sweet potato and peanut soup was in front of each place setting, except the three where the chairs had booster seats on them. In front of those were small bowls of Jell-O. 

Naomi was at the table showing them where to sit. 

Fraser waited until everyone was seated before following suit. "It's been a long time since we've had a home cooked meal." 

"Mrs. Skinner, this smells delicious," Ray said. 

"Thank you, Ray," Sonja said. 

Wade said grace. 

Diefenbaker had planted himself between Fraser's and Ray's chairs. He looked between the two men and whimpered. 

Fox was at the counter and held up a bowl. "We didn't forget you, Diefenbaker." 

The wolf barked and hurried into the kitchen as Fox set the bowl on the floor next to the one Tiger and her two kittens were eating out of. 

Fraser studied the men around him as he ate the soup. Something wasn't quite right about them, and it wasn't that they were homosexuals. He could relate in that area, only recently giving up his virginity to the two men whom he had fallen in love with, much to his father's disapproval. His father hadn't visited him since Fraser became romantically involved with Ray and Stan. 

Looking around the table, Fraser eyes paused on Alex then on John and finally Gwen. He did the same comparison with Jim and Blair and their son, and Walter and Fox and their children. There wasn't any doubt in Fraser's mind that each child had the genetic make up from both fathers. Maybe... 

"Do you men have any surviving family members?" Fraser asked. 

"My dad and brother live in North Carolina," John said. 

Sonja said, "Our son, West, is still living in Alaska with his wife and daughter." 

Fraser was rather surprised that none of the men had any sisters. It sort of blew the theory he was checking out that they might have used their sisters as surrogate mothers for their children. He'd have to watch them and discover how it was possible for a child to have two fathers. 

~x~X~x~ 

The Snake 

Heat wafted up off the carpet of sand on the desert's floor. In an adobe overlooking the valley of sand, an old man sat in a wheelchair surveying the land below. Smoke rose from the cigarette he held loosely in his tar-stained fingers. His long, gray hair hung in a greasy mess of snarls and knots. His vision dimmed for a few seconds as inky blackness swirled though his eyes. The black oil was keeping him alive. It had repaired the damage done to him from the fall down the stairs and repaired his neck so he no longer had the tube in his throat to help him talk and breathe. Unfortunately the oil was ebbing and when it died so would he. 

"Are you ready to go?" a female voice asked behind him. 

"Have you arranged everything?" 

"Yes." 

"Have you located my son?" 

"Yes." 

"Then I'm ready to go." 

She came over and wheeled his chair away from the cliff. 

"How is he?" 

"We've only just located him. Because it is winter in the Blue Ridge Mountains we haven't been able to get a team into the area to assess the situation." 

"Marita..." The old man lips rose in a small threatening smile. "I want to learn everything that's happened to Fox from the moment he dropped out of sight after his second abduction to what he ate for breakfast this morning. Send our best covert operatives into the area." Spender was hoping that the aliens had altered his son in such a way that he'd be able to use Fox to become immortal. 

A black helicopter was waiting for them as Marita wheeled him out into the scorching desert heat. 

"What about Jeffrey?" 

"No word, sir," Marita said. 

His other son had escaped from captivity after the aliens had attacked; ending the years of torturous experiments the smoker's scientists had been performing on him. Spender planned to spend Christmas with his sons whether they liked it or not. 

~x~X~x~ 

End of Chapter Twenty: Moonridge Lodge 

Coming soon Chapter Twenty-One: Moon Madness 

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